Fragmented Memories
by Kishiro Kitsune
Summary: AU. Kairi's life was practically perfect. Or at least it was until reoccuring dreams began to plague her sleep and strange events began to unfold around town. She soon realizes the two are connected and that she has a destiny greater than she could have ever imagined.
1. Just a Normal Day

A/N: Here it is, the (not-so) long awaited rewrite of 'For Love', a fic I wrote years ago and always intended to go back and edit due to some really bad plot holes. But as I reread it, I got new ideas for even better improvements and good changes to make, but the only way they would work is if I completely rewrote the entire thing.

So here I am, nearly a year after I decided to rewrite, with all of the chapters planned out and ideas for a few interludes later on, and what is hopefully a cohesive plot. I hope you all enjoy it~

There is an update schedule posted to my profile page, along with a link to my tumblr, which is where I spend most of my time. (And where I will probably post bonus goodies and chapter previews and stuff.)

(After this chapter, all notes from me will only be posted at the very end of the chapter. That way you can just get right to reading the fic and not have to scroll past my rambling.)

**Fragmented Memories**

_Chapter 1: Just a Normal Day_

Kairi Sinclair yawned, trying not to drift off to sleep in the middle of history class. She stared down at her notebook, trying to make sense of what she'd written so far, but found that most of the page was covered in silly doodles. She slumped over her desk, tucking her hand against her cheek, and began adding to the drawings.

To her right, Sora Strife looked just as bored as she did, leaning back and staring at the ceiling. His twin brother, Roxas, sat behind him, angrily tapping the lead of his pencil against his paper while glaring at the back of his brother's head. It seemed he still wasn't over Sora accidentally dropping his phone and cracking the screen.

A paper airplane glided past her and she looked up in time to see it collide with the shoulder of one of her classmates. She stifled a laugh as he flinched and swiveled around to glare at the back row.

The teacher, Mrs. Johnson, cleared her throat and turned away from the chalkboard. "As I was saying, it is important to remember the actions of kingdoms and worlds of the past so we may not repeat their mistakes. I'm sure most of you are familiar with the stories of Radiant Garden, a once prosperous world brought to ruin by the follies of its monarchy." (From the corner of her eye, Kairi saw Sora sit up straight, all of his focus on Mrs. Johnson.) "Because of their actions, it became an uninhabitable world. All that remains now are ruins and- is there a problem, Roxas?"

Kairi turned her attention to the blond twin, who was frowning as he lowered his hand.

"That's not right," he said. "The king and queen had nothing to do with the fall of Radiant Garden! They did everything they could to save it and their people! They didn't just sit there and let it happen, they were right there fighting alongside everyone else!"

Mrs. Johnson raised an eyebrow and the class collectively held its breath, waiting to see how she'd respond. "Well then, since you seem to know so much about a kingdom that fell a thousand years ago, you and Kairi can do your final project on it."

Roxas didn't look pleased, but he didn't complain either.

"Each of you will be assigned a partner for this project," Mrs. Johnson said, eliciting groans from the majority of the class. "You have until the end of the month to complete it. During the last week, you will give a presentation to the class. You may choose a world from the paper I'm about to hand you, but no pair may use the same as another. If you're not sure which to pick, I will help you and I will be happy to answer any questions you have." She paused for a moment to let her words sink in and for the complaints to quiet down. "Partners will be as follows: Roxas Strife and Kairi Sinclair, Sora Strife and Tidus Clearwater, Selphie Tilmitt and Pence White, Olette..." She continued on down the list, pairing off her relatively small class of sixteen before instructing them to get together with their partners and decide what to do their project on.

The next ten minutes were spent with the sound of desks and chairs scraping across the floor as the class rearranged itself. Mrs. Johnson walked around and began handed out pages of information.

Roxas carried his chair over to Kairi's desk, not seeing the point in moving his desk when he could share Kairi's. Sora excitedly gestured for his sandy-haired partner to leave his corner in the back and join him in the second row, which the cheerful teen was happy to do.

"Nice of Roxas to open his big mouth and get you assigned to a world instead of being able to choose," Tidus joked as he sat down. He winked at Kairi and nodded towards Selphie, who was more than likely chatting off Pence's ear. "At least it's an interesting world. How much do you wanna bet that Selphie will convince him to do theirs on Trabia?"

Roxas immediately fixed Sora with a hard look – a fair mimicry of their older brother's no-nonsense stare. "No. No more dumb bets."

Sora pouted. "It's just some harmless fun!"

"It's not, because then you run out of allowance and have to beg me and Riku for snack munny. Or you go to Cloud and he gets annoyed and then _I _get lectured for letting you foolishly spend it all!" Roxas complained.

Sora was about to say something else, but shut his mouth as Mrs. Johnson swooped over to hand over their instructions. He smiled charmingly at her. "We were just discussing what place we want to cover. I think Gaia would be interesting, but Tidus hasn't told me what he'd like to do yet."

Tidus scratched the back of his neck, a sure sign that he was feeling nervous about his suggestion. Or it could've just been because their teacher suddenly focused her attention on him. "I, uh, I was thinking we could do ours on Zanarkand."

Sora looked intrigued. "That's in Spira, right? Alright, lets do that! I've done loads of stuff on Gaia before, so this'll be a nice change." He quickly informed Mrs. Johnson of their decision, to Tidus's great joy, and then began asking his partner questions so he could learn more about the most magnificent of Spira's ancient cities.

Kairi and Roxas exchanged amused looks at their enthusiasm and then turned their attention to their own project.

* * *

><p>Lunchtime rolled around without further incident. Sora sneaked off to make his usual lunchtime phone call to his boyfriend, Riku, who conveniently didn't have class at the same time as their lunch period. Roxas scowled and set off in search of his twin, leaving Kairi and Tidus to walk outside to their usual spot together.<p>

"So I think I heard Selphie talking Irvine into bringing his charcoal grill to the beach tomorrow," Tidus remarked as they walked through the crowded hallways. "Think she's trying to throw another party?"

Kairi shrugged. "It's possible. Unless she's finally taking Sora's suggestion for food seriously. We'll have to get someone else to help man the grill though, so Irvine doesn't have to do it all on his own. Someone who _isn't _one of my brothers," she amended, noticing the mischievous look on her friend's face.

Her brothers were fairly well known for their love of fire and pyrotechnics and often got in trouble because of it. Thankfully they'd calmed down more since graduating high school, but every now and then she'd hear of a rouge firecracker getting released in town.

Tidus laughed gleefully. He opened one of the double door leading outside and let Kairi go first. "After you, milady."

"Why thank you, kind sir." Kairi reponded with a quick curtsy before exiting.

Tidus hurried after to, letting the door swing shut behind him. Together the two of them walked over to the outdoor food court, which consisted of several round tables of different sizes. Since there were ten of them altogether, they always picked the largest of the tables. They could already see that most of their friends were already there.

A petite brunette named Selphie Tilmitt sat between two tall boys, one with orange hair which stuck straight up in the front and the other wearing a cowboy hat over his long brown hair, which was tied back in a ponytail like always. The redhead was Wakka Byrd, a boisterous fellow who was captain of Destiny High's prized Blitzball team. The boy in the cowboy hat was Irvine Kinneas, who was rarely seen away from Selphie's side.

To Irvine's left, three others were bunched together talking in hushed tones. One was a heavyset boy with dark brown hair named Pence White, who was friendly and kind. The other boy was a blond named Hayner Trudell who had a short temper and a mouth which often got him into trouble. The last person at their table was Olette Pierce, a stubborn and openly opinionated girl with wavy brown hair.

Tidus grabbed the seat next to Wakka, immediately getting drawn into the tale Selphie was telling. Kairi took her place next to him and tried to listen, but was quickly distracted by what she soon came to realize was a heated argument between Hayner and Olette, with poor Pence stuck in the middle.

"Look, I'm sorry," Olette hissed, trying to keep her voice down. "It came up all of a sudden and there's no way I can get out of it! I _have _to go back to Twilight Town for the weekend."

Hayner crossed his arms over his chest. "Tell them you've already made plans! They can just reschedule."

"I can't ask them to reschedule the_ baby shower, _Hayner." Olette sounded exasperated. "You three will just have to hold movie night without me. You'll be fine."

"It won't be the same."

"We could always wait until you get back," Pence cautiously suggested.

"No. It _has _to be on Friday night. It's tradition," Hayner stubbornly replied. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the final two members of their group approaching the table. "Roxas! Tell Olette she has to stay for movie night with us!"

Roxas raised an eyebrow as he and Sora took the last two seats between Kairi and Hayner.

"I just told you I can't!" Olette exclaimed, finally raising her voice.

Roxas didn't look happy that he had to be the one to put an end to their argument. "If Olette says she can't, then she can't. Drop it."

Taken aback by his friend's abnormally foul mood, Hayner kept his mouth shut and didn't complain about Olette ditching them for the remainder of lunch. Instead, he sulked.

While half of the table was in poor spirits, Selphie couldn't look happier if she tried. She stood up, clapping her hands together to get everyone's attention. "I'm sure you've all heard about the beach party I'm throwing on Saturday, so now I'm just going to confirm everything. It's going to start around two, which should give everyone enough time to get there. Me and Irvy will be there before then to get a few things set up, so if you wanna join us and help out, that'd be awesome!"

Sora raised his hand in he air and waved it. "Question! We're having it on the play island, right? Not Destiny Beach? Because we almost got in big trouble last time."

"Because _Reno_ thought it'd be a good idea to set off fireworks at three in the morning near the beach houses," Kairi mumbled irritably.

Tidus snickered.

Selphie nodded. "Since it's just our usual group, we're going to the island. That way we can be as noisy as we want and not have people complain! I think it'll be our last fun, friendly get-together before the end of the school year suckfest really begins."

Her words got some chuckles from her friends.

"Is it just the ten of us or are we inviting other people?" Wakka asked.

"I've already taken care of that. Riku, Axel, and Demyx are invited. And I also asked Lulu, of course." (Wakka smiled at the mention of his girlfriend.) "And I think they have a few people they want to invite. Or at least Riku does."

Sora looked a little puzzled by that.

There was a brief moment of silence and then Tidus cleared his throat. "Since no one else wants to ask the most important question, I guess I'll do it. Are we going to play Blitzball?"

Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>Next Chapter: <em>Party at the Beach<em>


	2. Party on the Beach

**Fragmented Memories**

_Chapter 2: Party on the Beach_

Kairi awoke to the sound of her oldest brother yelling: "Has anyone seen my keys, yo?"

She groaned quietly and closed her eyes, wishing, not for the first time, that her brothers knew how to be quiet.

"Check the freezer!" Axel shouted from down the hall.

"It ain't there!"

Kairi would end up murdering both of them one day.

"Stop yelling! Your sister is still asleep!"

_'Thanks, dad,' _Kairi thought sarcastically as she sat up. She could feel that her hair was a ruffled mess, but made no move to try and smooth it over. Taking a deep breath, she yelled: "I'm already awake!"

There was a brief moment of silence followed by hysterical laughter from Axel's room, though it wasn't from her brother. It was a sad, sad fact that Demyx, who was as talkative as both Selphie and Sora, could still manage to be quieter than anyone in her family.

She sat there for a moment longer, debating whether or not it would be worth it to lay down and sleep for a while longer. As Demyx's laughter turned to high squeals and cries for Axel to stop and a loud crash sounded from downstairs, Kairi made her decision.

She rolled out of bed and got ready for the day ahead.

Axel had been best friends with Demyx Harbor for as long as Kairi could remember. In fact, they'd been friends for so long that he was practically a member of the family – just with blond hair (styled into some kind of Mohawk-mullet hybrid) instead of red.

"Morning, Kairi!" He cheerfully greeted when she finally emerged from her room. (She suspected that he must have retreated to the hall to escape from Axel.) "Ready for the beach party today? I know I am! It's going to be so much fun!"

Kairi smiled. Demyx's enthusiasm was contagious at times and she found herself energized just by being near him. "It'll be great to get everyone together before we _really _start worrying about finals and college applications."

Demyx made a sour face. "Ugh, don't remind me. I feel like I'll be lucky if I pass any of my classes this semester.

"Hey! No depressing shit today!" Axel hollered. "Besides, me 'n Riku are gonna tutor your ass so there's no way you'll fail!"

Demyx cheered up at the reminder.

"You'll do fine, Dem," Kairi told him reassuringly. She felt a little bad for bringing up the subject to begin with. "Axel's right. Lets not worry about that today. Selphie would kill me if she knew I'd unintentionally killed the fun before her party can get started."

"Then this conversation will be our little secret," Demyx said with a wink. "Now how about some breakfast?"

Axel stuck his head out of his bedroom. He was shirtless and had his brush tangled in his wild red hair, trying to tame it. "Don't eat all of my bacon this time!"

Demyx grinned cheekily. "No promises!"

Kairi and Demyx walked downstairs to find Reno with his hand stuck down the kitchen drain while Mr. Sinclair sat at the kitchen table slowly eating his food while reading the newspaper. His auburn hair was tied back in a ponytail and the sleeves of his shirt were rolled up.

"Umm... isn't that the garbage disposal?" Demyx asked, wearily eying Reno.

"Yes," Kairi replied, not sparing her oldest brother a second glance. She grabbed a plate from the counter and sat down at the kitchen table next to her dad. Demyx was fast to join them, grabbing food and piling it on his plate before he'd even sat down.

Mr. Sinclair paused in his reading to take a sip of coffee. "Good morning, kids."

"Mornin', Mr. Sinclair," Demyx greeted through a mouthful of toast. "You know Reno's got his hand in the garbage disposal, right?"

He didn't even bat an eyelash. "Yes."

Demyx gave up questioning the safety of Reno's actions and instead started up a conversation with Kairi about the party.

"So if I were to, just for example, bring a dozen or so water balloons and hide water guns all over the island and then jump out and spray anyone who walks by my hiding spot, how annoyed do you think Selphie would be? On a scale of one to ten."

"I'm not sure Selphie's the one you need to worry about," Kairi said. "Imagine if you hit Axel, after he spent all morning getting his hair to look _just _right for Roxas."

Demyx thought about that for a moment and then shuddered, deciding it was in his best interest to forget the idea altogether. Axel was really good at getting revenge when he felt he'd been slighted and he was known to be rather creative about it.

As if summoned by the mention of his name, Axel slunk into the kitchen and stealthily poured himself a cup of coffee without anyone noticing. He rolled his eyes at Reno and then sat down next to Demyx.

Mrs. Sinclair stepped into the room from, her black high heels clacking loudly against the floor. Tall and slender with flaming red hair, it was easy to see where Axel got his looks. Her eyes though, were the same stunning shade of blue-violet as Kairi's. She paused a few steps into the room, taking in the scene before her.

"Reno Sinclair, get your hand out of there this instant!"

Reno flinched, yanking his hand out of the drain. "But my keys!"

Mrs. Sinclair sighed heavily and held up a worn brown boot. "You left them in here. _Please _be more mindful of where you put your things."

Reno turned away from the sink with a big grin on his face. He practically skipped over to take his boot and keys. "Thanks, ma! Yer the best!" He said as he breezed past her to the back door. "Hey there, li'l Strife!"

"Hi, Reno!"

Seconds later, Sora walked into the kitchen to greet the rest of the family and Demyx. "So who's ready to party?"

Demyx pumped a fist in the air, unable to speak thanks to his mouthful of eggs. Axel used the opportunity to swipe one of the eight pieces of bacon piled on the blond's plate.

"Oh? Is Selphie throwing one of her famous parties?" Mrs Sinclair asked fondly. "One of these days I may end up hiring her to organize one of mine. She could make a wonderful career of it."

"We'll pass the message along," Sora promised.

"You're here early though," Kairi remarked. "The party doesn't start for another few hours."

Sora nodded. "I know. But I'm meeting up with Riku in about twenty minutes and we thought you might like to join us. We're gonna go hang out in town. Maybe get some ice cream."

"You had me at 'ice cream'," Kairi joked.

* * *

><p>There was nothing better than relaxing in the shade of an umbrella and enjoying an ice cream cone with best friends on a warm spring day. A light breeze kept the warmth from becoming uncomfortable and the people walking around and talking provided a relaxed atmosphere. And even though her best friends were being lovey-dovey with each other, Kairi found she didn't mind too much.<p>

"You've got some chocolate right there," Riku said, tapping his cheek. "No, not there. _Here._" He reached over and gently wiped his napkin over a spot on Sora's face, removing the mess.

Sora smiled sweetly at him. "Thanks, Riku."

Kairi cleared her throat, reminding the two that she was still there. "If you two would like to rejoin me in the real world, we still need to find something to do for the next hour."

Sora reluctantly broke eye contact with Riku. "I thought we could do some shopping. My last swim trunks suffered an unfortunate accident thanks to Roxas and Axel, so I need a new pair."

"Axel set them on fire, huh?" Kairi said knowingly.

Sora shook his head. "Nah. The way they tell it, Axel set his essay on fire by accident and Roxas thought the best way to put it out was with my trunks. I must've left them on his side of the room or something." He shrugged. "So what color should I get? My last ones were blue, but I think I want something different this time."

"Pink," Kairi suggested jokingly. She plucked the string of her bikini top, which was visible beneath her shirt. "Then we'd match."

Sora cringed at the very idea. "No way, Kairi. I wouldn't be caught dead in pink!"

Riku looked thoughtful. "I don't know, Sora. A nice, vibrant pink just might suit you. And then I'll always be able to see where you're at."

Sora pouted and sunk down in his seat as his friends laughed at him. "You both suck. Just for this, I'm getting red. The brightest red I can find. And there's nothing you can do about it!"

Their laughter turned to strained cries of disagreement, begging him not to bring back the return of red pants. They weren't able to keep it up for long and soon the three friends were laughing as they set off for a little shopping.

* * *

><p>By the time the trio arrived at the play island, most of their friends were already there and had stuff set up. There was a clear cut division between the lounge area - where beach towels and umbrellas, as well as the grill was set up - and the much larger space for running around and activities.<p>

Selphie was in the process of directing Irvine, Wakka, and Demyx in setting up a volleyball net. It didn't look like it was going very smoothly, since Demyx was tangled in the net and no one was trying to help him get free. Irvine and Wakka had their hands full with the poles, which kept tilting and threatening to fall over.

Tidus was in as good of a mood as ever and was laughing and joking around with Pence and Roxas as they cleared out one of the old sheds of the junk they'd collected since they were kids.

"Strange, I thought Axel would be here by now," Kairi said as she stepped down from the dock and onto the warm sand. "Hayner too."

Riku and Sora hopped down beside her once they were done securing their rowboat to the dock.

"Lulu's not here either. Doesn't she usually ride over with Wakka?" Sora asked.

Kairi nodded. "I'm sure they'll be here soon. Though if mom found out about Axel's new collection of lighters, he might not make it at all."

"I could go ask Roxas. I bet he'd know," Sora said. "Or Demyx. Though he looks a little busy. How do you think he managed that?"

Kairi glanced down the beach and had to stifle a giggle at the sight of Demyx sitting in the sand and pouting because the net had gotten tangled in his hair. "I'll, um, I'll go lend him a hand."

"Then we'll help Irvine and Wakka," Riku volunteered.

They joined their friends and by some miracle managed to get the volleyball net set up without any injuries or ruined hairstyles. Even better, Tidus, Roxas, and Pence wrapped up their own project right after they did.

"I swear I don't know where _half _of that came from," Tidus complained, gesturing to the jumbled piles of crates they'd attempted to sort through. "And why do we have sixteen wood swords? Who needs that many?"

"Probably because you and Sora kept breaking or losing yours, ya?" Wakka said with a chuckle. He walked over to the mess and pushed a few things aside before pulling out a child-sized blitzball that had seen better days. "Now _this _brings back memories!"

"I'm surprised I _have _any memories of it," Sora joked, rubbing the back of his head as if still feeling the ache.

Everyone moved closer to the old toys, drawn in by the resurfacing memories, though Selphie and Irvine hung back a little.

Sora picked up one of the unbroken swords. "It feels like it's been ages since I last held one of these." He grinned and pointed it at Riku. "I never did knock you off your throne like I promised. Well today that changes!"

"No way," Riku refused.

"Scared that I'll beat you? Or that you'll get a splinter?" Sora taunted.

Riku crossed his arms over his chest. "Neither. I thought we'd outgrown this."

"I think he's too chicken, Sora," Roxas said with a smirk. "He knows there's no way he can beat me now. Listen to him, using his _old age _as an excuse."

"Fine. You want to fight, we'll fight," Riku said, delving into the pile to find the perfect weapon. "I didn't know you were so eager for me to kick your ass!"

Sora high-fived his twin, congratulating him on successfully baiting Riku.

Kairi covered her mouth to muffle her giggling. It felt like it'd been so long since she last saw the three of them so relaxed together. She felt justified in blaming it on the pressures of being a student. She'd certainly fallen victim to it as well.

"I'm in too!" Tidus exclaimed. He turned to look at the others, his blue eyes shining. "Anyone else?"

"Depends. Do I have to use this thing?" Wakka asked, holding up the old blitzball.

Tidus grinned at him. "If we have to use these swords, you have to use that ball. It's only fair."

Wakka looked from his friend, to the pile of junk before them, to the small blitzball in his hand, and then sighed heavily. "Fine. I'm in."

Tidus pumped a fist in the air in celebration.

Selphie began a whispered conversation with Irvine as Kairi stepped forward and joined Riku in digging through the pile for her own weapon.

"You too, Kai?" Demyx asked.

"Yeah," the red-head replied without looking up. She passed a larger sword to Riku, who gave her a thankful smile. "Can't let the boys have fun all by themselves. Besides, I have my own reputation to uphold." She withdrew a smaller sword that had her name etched into the blade and finally looked up to smirk at Tidus.

"This will be the day I beat you and regain my honor!" Tidus proclaimed.

Riku snorted in amusement. "Yeah. Good luck with that."

"I'll fight too!" Selphie suddenly announced, breaking away from Irvine's side. She shot him an annoyed look when he started to say something, which shut him up. Pleased that he wasn't going to complain, she knelt down to pick through the crates. "Jeez, did you guys never play with jump ropes or something?"

"There should be one in there, but I don't know if it's any good," Sora replied. He looked around at the remaining three who were standing around with nothing he do. Irvine didn't look the least bit interested and he knew better than to ask if Demyx or Pence wanted to fight. "So, which one of you wants to referee this time?"

"Me!" Demyx shouted, flinging his hand skyward. He immediately blushed at his exuberance and dropped it back to his side. "I mean, um, I'll do it. I'll referee. I'm not much of a fighter anyway."

Kairi, who was helping locate the missing jump rope, leaned over to Selphie and whispered: "He knocked himself out with his own oar last time."

The brunette giggled.

Demyx pouted a little, but otherwise gave no indication that he'd heard her. While the combatants finished locating their weapon of choice and began warming up, he grabbed a stick and began drawing brackets in the sand.

Pence and Irvine joined him, having nothing else to do.

"So how does this usually work?" Irvine asked.

"Normally it's rock-paper-scissors or we draw names," Pence said with a shrug. "But since Kairi and Tidus _always _end up facing each other first, we've given up fighting fate and just let them go. And since Riku's the champion, he doesn't have to fight anyone until the final round." He paused and watched Demyx write 'Kairi' and 'Tidus' in the first two brackets. "Rules change from game to game. Sometimes it's the first to score three hits. Others it's the first to disarm their opponent, though we can't use that one when Axel's here. He used to use these painted Frisbees with cardboard spikes…"

"Last time we drew a big circle in the sand and the loser was the first to step over the line," Demyx said. "We called it the championship to end all championships! I didn't think we'd ever be doing it again."

"How long has it been?" Irvine asked.

Demyx looked to Pence for help, knowing the other boy would remember far better than he did.

"It was just before you, Riku, and Axel started high school," Pence reminded him. "One of you-" (Demyx raised an eyebrow.) "Alright, _Riku _decided you were getting too old for such a childish thing so we had one last big battle. I'm still not convince that Roxas's use of two swords halfway through was legal but whatever."

Demyx rolled his eyes. "There was nothing about _any _of the fights that Olette should have allowed. I mean, I knocked myself out! Axel kept throwing his Frisbees and hitting people in the head! And it wasn't always who he was up against! Kairi and Tidus just did their own thing. Sora threw his sword aside and tried to wrestle Riku. It was a mess. But not this time." He stepped back away from his brackets. "Lets go settle who's facing who!"

* * *

><p>It'd been fun squaring off against Tidus again. There was something nice – something <em>familiar <em>- about the clack of the swords and kicking up hot sand with their feet. It wasn't like going up against Sora or Riku, who held back to give her a chance. Nor was it like facing down Roxas, who'd disarm her within a minute.

Tidus was on her level. When they fought, it was the two of them clashing with all of their (meager) skills.

It felt great.

Kairi braced her hands behind her on the dock, stretching out her legs so her toes could skim the top of the water.

She'd been surprised when Selphie defeated Wakka in the first round. As old as his blitzball was, he still put up a good fight, but Selphie wielded her jump rope like a pro. It was almost terrifying the way she whipped it around, using the weight of the wooden handles and the flexibility of the thick yarn rope to her advantage.

But then she beat Sora.

And while Kairi hadn't expected to win beyond Tidus, she hadn't imagined being so thoroughly trounced by Selphie either.

She could hear Riku and Sora arguing about something as she raised her eyes to the cloudless sky and shifted her weight to rub her arm where the wooden handle of the jump rope had undoubtedly left a bruise. Where had Selphie learned to fight like that? The way she dipped and spun around, quickly and easily targeting weak points let her know that it wasn't the brunette's first time.

She supposed it didn't matter. Her skills still weren't enough to beat Riku.

"Kairi's on my team!" Sora yelled suddenly.

Kairi sighed and pulled her legs up from the water. She didn't have to ask what he was talking about. She already knew he was ready to take advantage of the volleyball net they'd helped put up earlier.

It wouldn't hurt to play a game while they were waiting for the others to finish whatever they were doing on the mainland and row over to their island.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>I kept a few things from the original and this trip to the beach was one of them. (The next chapter is another.) But even the things I kept have gone through major changes.<p>

And now for something I forgot to do in the first chapter. Since I'm including characters from different Final Fantasy games, I should probably give little intros for everyone who isn't familiar with them.

Introducing:

**Reno **- from Final Fantasy VII

**Irvine Kinneas** - from Final Fantasy VIII

Next chapter: A Glimpse at Memory


	3. A Glimpse at Memory

**Fragmented Memories**

_Chapter 3: A Glimpse at Memory_

_She watched through a fog as images and scenes flickered before her vision. Colors and sounds alike were muted, echoing as if being shouted across a distance but coming across as soft as a breathless whisper._

_A young man with silver hair held another in his arms, smiling faintly as he looked to her and spoke of a great progress of some kind. Of training going well._

_The image shifted to a petite brunette in yellow, spinning around a warmly lit room. She stopped and, with a broad grin, waved her clipboard and began issuing directions. Her words got grumbled responses from those around her, followed by people reluctantly moving to do her bidding._

_There was a tall redhead with his arms around the shoulders of a much shorter boy with blond hair who was trying a little too hard to appear irritated. The redhead tossed his head back as he laughed. A second blond with much wilder hair ran over and squeezed between them. By some miracle, he managed not to spill a single drop of water from the glass in his hand. The first blond shoved them both away, looking away to hide his smile while they complained._

* * *

><p>Kairi lay in bed for a minute or two, staring at her ceiling and trying to remember what she'd dreamed about. She had the strangest feeling of deja vu and could only figure that it had something to do with her dreams. Any fragments slipped away the more she tried to grasp at them. It was no use.<p>

She sighed and dragged herself out of bed to get ready for the day. As much as she would have loved to lounge around all day, she'd promised to go into town with Tidus and help him find a gift for his mom's birthday. As one of his best friends, it was her job to make sure he didn't get anything completely ridiculous or inappropriate.

After breakfast and a few quick rounds of MarioKart with Reno, she left the house to walk a few doors down to meet Tidus at his house. He was sitting on the front steps waiting when she arrived.

He hopped up and jogged down to the end of the driveway when he saw her. "Ready to go?"

"You bet!" She responded.

As they walked, her mind drifted back to her dreams. She didn't know why she was so intent on dwelling on them. It wasn't like she'd suffered through a horrific nightmare or had another dream where everyone's head were twice as big as normal or anything strange like that. From the bits and pieces still clinging to her memory, they were completely normal dreams.

But...

Kairi bit her lip, casting her eyes to the sidewalk.

An image of Selphie in a bright yellow dress, whipping around nunchaku covered in flames without getting hurt flickered at the back of her mind.

Kairi shook her head to clear it away. She was being silly! It must have been because of the tournament the day before when Selphie had kicked butt with an old jump rope.

"Kairi? Are you okay?"

The redhead snapped her head up and guiltily met Tidus's concerned gaze. "I'm fine! Just a little lost in my thoughts is all." She gave him what she hoped came across as a reassuring smile.

"Are you sure?' Tidus asked. "I know this isn't anyone's idea of a fun Sunday, so if you have something else you'd rather do, that's cool. I mean, it's not like I could possibly pick a worse gift than last year, right?"

Kairi fought not to laugh, but her smile betrayed her amusement at the memory. "I wouldn't think so either, but I'm going to tag along just in case. Besides, shopping with you sounds like a much better way to spend the day than sitting around the house listening to Reno curse at the TV."

"Sora and Riku busy again?"

Her smile slipped away. "Yeah... And Roxas too. Axel was moaning about it this morning before he left for the garage."

As part of her mom's eternal quest to get the boys to behave and be contributing members of society, both Reno and Axel worked at the Highwind Garage, which was owned by an old friend of their father. It'd started out as a punishment for setting the roof on fire one summer, but the two ended up loving it there. And though Cid Highwind was a cranky man who would never admit he appreciated their help, everyone knew he did.

"Maybe Cloud's just been giving them extra chores? And, um, college finals are sooner than ours, so I bet Riku's just studying extra hard while Sora's too busy to distract him!" Tidus suggested.

"Yeah, maybe you're right," Kairi said, thankful for his attempt to cheer her back up. "Too bad we can't switch partners for that history project."

"Nuh uh, no way!" Tidus protested with a laugh. "Look, Roxas is cool and all, but me and him don't do well as partners. Remember last years science project?"

Kairi grinned. "I remember Sora falling out of his desk from laughing so hard. He smashed his nose and had to be escorted to the nurse's office."

"Yeah, _exactly_! Bad things happen when me and Roxas team up!" Tidus exclaimed, gesturing wildly to emphasize just how not good it was.

"Well, when you put it that way, I guess I have no choice but to stick with Roxas," Kairi said with an exaggerated sigh. Her teasing mood gave way to a more sincere one as they continued down the sidewalk and began to see the first few buildings that marked the start of Destiny Island's shopping district. "It'll still be nice to spend time with Roxas without Axel hanging around."

Tidus glanced over at her. "How are you going to manage that?"

Kairi shrugged. "It's not as difficult as you think. Axel knows better than to interrupt us when we're doing schoolwork. But enough about classes and homework! It's bad enough Sora volunteered me to go with him and Roxas to check out East Destiny tomorrow. I was really looking forward to having Monday off too. I could have sat around, painted my nails, read a book..."

"Man, he was serious about that?" Tidus asked with a groan.

"Unfortunately," Kairi replied. "I'll worry about it later. Today is all about helping you! Off the top of your head, name some things you think your mom would like."

"Uh... a nice scarf? Like one of those fancy decorative ones?" Tidus guessed.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Ti, we live on a _tropical_ island. No scarves. Not even a thin one." She sighed. Helping him was starting to look more exhausting than she imagined. For the briefest of moments she wished she'd gotten Selphie involved, but the thought of the petite brunette dragging them to every store in a tireless search for the perfect gift sounded way worse.

Tidus frowned and kicked a rock down the sidewalk, the sole of his yellow shoe scuffing across the concrete. "Something she'd like... She likes cooking, so an apron?"

"Doesn't she have ten?" Kairi asked.

"Oh. Yeah."

It was going to be a _very_ long day.

* * *

><p>Irvine slid into the booth across from his girlfriend, a troubled expression on his face. Selphie didn't look much happier as she read a lengthy article on her tablet. She accepted the cup of coffee handed to her without looking up and set it down on a simple paper coaster.<p>

"It's getting worse, isn't it?" Irvine asked, already knowing what the answer was.

Selphie murmured an affirmative and handed over the tablet. She picked up her coffee and took a few long sips while waiting for him to get a few paragraphs in. "She's attacking Trabia."

"Sel..."

"She's attacking my_ home_ and all I can do is sit here and be useless." She set down her cup a little too harshly and splashed some of the drink over the sides. "Damn it..." She mumbled miserably, reaching for a napkin to clean up the mess. Tears welled up in her green eyes, obscuring her vision.

Irvine reached over and took her hand, soothingly rubbing his thumb over the back of it. "Hey, it's going to be alright. The Gardens _will_ stop her. This is exactly the reason they were created."

"I know," Selphie whispered, finding it hard to speak past the lump in her throat. "But that doesn't make it any easier. We should be there, Irvy. We should be home with our friends, doing whatever we can do to help."

"Yeah," Irvine sighed. "Yeah, I know."

* * *

><p>After searching countless shops only to leave empty handed, Kairi was beginning to reach the end of her rope. She'd pointed out a number of things she was sure Mrs. Clearwater would love, only for Tidus to shoot down her ideas one after the other. To be fair, she equally vetoed all of the things he suggested, mostly because it was something that would never get used.<p>

"Jewelry's good, right?" Tidus asked, gazing up at the sign above the next shop they were walking towards.

"Does she wear any?" Kairi asked, trying to picture his mother in her head. She couldn't remember her wearing anything extravagant, but that didn't mean she wouldn't appreciate something simple.

Tidus thought for a moment and then nodded. "Yeah, every now and then. Most of the stuff she has is for special occasions, but she like necklaces and earrings."

"Well then, lets see what we can find," Kairi said cheerfully, striding towards the store ahead of him.

In the end, after giving in and asking one of the girls at the jewelry counter for assistance, the two both agreed on a simple, sterling silver chain necklace and a pair of charms to go along with it. While Kairi thought something more in tune with his mother's interests would be better (such as flowers or tiny baking instruments), Tidus insisted that she would love the blitzball charms he'd picked.

"Blue to represent me, and red for the old man," he said, managing to keep from sounding too bitter when he mentioned his dad.

Kairi didn't breathe a word about it, knowing it would only put him in a sour mood. "They are pretty," she said instead, admiring the carefully crafted metal. "See, you've got a better eye than either of us thought. You didn't need me to tag along after all."

"Maybe. But I'm still glad you came with me," Tidus said, handing over the munny needed to pay for his gift. He got an idea and turned to face the redhead. "How about, as a reward, I buy us some ice cream?"

"You know me, I'll never turn down free ice cream. The usual place?" She asked.

"Of course! Where else is there?"

* * *

><p>When Kairi got home that evening, she found Reno sitting in the exact same place as when she left that morning. He was still on the couch in his pajamas, slouched over as he intensely stared at the screen and hammered the buttons on his controller. The only thing that was different was the number of empty beer cans and bags of chips and snacks strewn about the coffee table.<p>

"Have you seriously been here all day?" Kairi asked.

Reno didn't look away from the screen as he narrowly avoided a piranha plant. "Nah, I got up for food."

Kairi raised an eyebrow and watched her oldest brother in amusement. When it became apparent he didn't have anything else to say, she shook her head fondly and moved on up the stairs to her room. She could hear loud music blasting from Axel's, a clear sign that he was moping about something.

She paused to bang on the door. "Hey, turn it down! The rest of us don't wanna go deaf along with you!"

Axel's response was to turn up the volume.

Kairi gave up and stepped across the hall to her room, shutting the door behind her in an attempt to muffle some of the sound. It didn't work very well. She would just have to deal with it while she finished up the last of her homework for the weekend. She knew she wouldn't have time for it the next day, since she was sure Sora would find some way to keep them running around for hours with very little time to relax.

She settled in at her desk and got to work.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>About halfway through this chapter, I considered cutting it out completely. It didn't feel important in the grand scheme of things and I couldn't remember why I included it, but after looking back over my notes I realized that while it isn't the <em>most <em>important (actually, it ranks as one of the least important), it still sets up a few things. Like the strong friendship between Kairi and Tidus. As well as showing more of Kairi's relationship with her brothers.

Next Chapter: A Boy Gone Rogue


	4. A Boy Gone Rogue

**Fragmented Memories**

Chapter 4: A Boy Gone Rogue

"_Heart! Wait up!"_

_A woman in a short pink dress and a mask which only covered her eyes stopped walking and half turned to face a yellow-clad woman who was running toward her. The woman in yellow had coppery brown hair that bounced with every movement and wore a mask just like the woman in pink._

"_Is something wrong?" Heart asked, her stance going from relaxed to alert._

_The other woman shook her head as she came to a stop next to Heart. "Everything's just fine. I wanted to ask you about training, that's all. I heard we're going to be working with the guys again tomorrow."_

"_That's right," Heart said, turning to continue walking._

_The woman in yellow easily fell in step next to her. "Any reason why? I mean, usually it's just us. Seems a little strange that we're training with them two days in a row. What do you think it means?"_

"_All it means is that we need to better cooperate with them. It's not like we haven't talked about this for weeks, Passion. The goal is to get to know each others strengths and weaknesses, which will lead to more efficient combat," Heart said, sounding as though she was reciting something that had been repeated to her many times._

_Passion hummed thoughtfully, but didn't offer her own opinion or ask anymore questions._

_Heart glanced over at her sunny companion. "Is there a reason you came to me for this?"_

"_Just wanted your thoughts," replied Passion. She hesitated a moment, worrying her lower lip, and then plowed on. "Actually, what I really wanna know is if you wanna go down to the bar with me tonight. Some of the others are going to and I want you to meet some of my Centran friends!"_

_Heart sighed. "I'll consider it. There's still a lot I have to do today."_

"_Well, as long as you actu-"_

* * *

><p><em>BANG. BANG. BANG.<em>

Kairi rolled over with a miserable groan, pulling the covers up over her head. She didn't know what time it was, but she knew it was too early.

"Rise and shine, princess!" Axel yelled through her door, his voice obnoxiously cheerful. "Get your shit together so we can go! Sora has already called me three times asking me where we're at. Twice with Roxas's phone!"

Kairi curled her legs closer to her body, trying her best to ignore him and sink back into blissful sleep. She was aware that she was being childish, but were a few extra minutes really too much to ask for? It wasn't like Axel hadn't pulled the same thing on her a dozen times.

Axel banged on the door harder. "Seriously, Kairi! Get up or I'll call Sora and let him know the reason we're running late!"

"Fine! I'm up!" Kairi shouted, throwing off her covers in frustration.

"You better be!"

She heard Axel retreat and entertained the idea of going back to sleep anyway, but decided it wasn't worth whatever punishment her brother would think up. So she got up and went about her usual routine, letting her mind wander.

She felt like she'd had another odd dream, but once again couldn't remember what it was about or who was in it. More than the strangeness of the dreams, it was the not remembering that was worrying her. Normally she could recall bits and pieces of them, even if they made no sense.

"Kairi! Hurry up! Sora's calling me _again!_" Axel yelled.

Kairi tied her hair back into a ponytail and grabbed her slim wallet to slide it into the back pocket of her light pink shorts. She tugged down the hem of her white tank top and then left her room. "Alright, I'm ready," she said, rolling her eyes at his impatience. She grabbed his phone before he could say a word to Sora and put it to her ear. "Yes, we're on our way. Please stop calling Axel."

"_Well it took you long enough! It's almost nine!" Sora exclaimed, not sounding annoyed at all. "But I'm glad it's you this time and not Axel. He was rude."_

"Maybe next time you don't yell into the phone," Kairi suggested.

"_He sounded sleepy. I just wanted to help him wake up. Roxas suggested it. Anyway, we'll meet you at the main entrance, but you need to hurry up! Riku has class at ten."_

"With Axel's driving, we'll beat you there," Kairi joked.

"_Don't die," Sora unhelpfully suggested before hanging up._

Kairi gave her brother back his phone so he could text Demyx to see if he needed a ride and then hurried downstairs to grab a quick bite to eat. She managed to snag a granola bar before Axel caught up to her and practically dragged her to the car.

After a quick stop to pick up Demyx, they peeled off down the street, leaving a faint trail of smoke in their wake.

* * *

><p>"Never again," Demyx vowed, giving Axel a dark look. "No, seriously. If you're driving us home, I'm walking or hitching a ride with Riku. Curbs are not there for you to drive over!"<p>

"You go right ahead and do that," Axel said, unconcerned.

Demyx looked to Kairi for help, but she just shrugged and said: "Nothing is more terrifying than riding with Selphie behind the wheel."

The three of them slowly approached the designated meeting stop with Demyx pouting over the fact that no one was agreeing with him. None of them were too surprised to see that Roxas, Sora, and Riku were already there waiting for them.

Sora jumped up and down and waved his arms to get their attention the moment he spotted them, a wide smile stretching across his face. Roxas stood and reached out a hand to rest on Sora's shoulder to try and get him to stop acting so childish. Riku fondly shook his head and made no attempt to help Roxas.

Kairi waved back, abandoning her brother and Demyx to run over and join her friends. She let Sora pull her in for a tight hug and then stepped back and greeted Roxas and Riku.

"So who's ready for the grand tour?" Axel asked loudly. He stepped up next to Roxas and slung his arm across his boyfriend's shoulders, tugging him in closer.

"Me!" Sora responded.

Axel grinned at him. "I knew there was a reason I like you. C'mon, we'll start in the main building and I'll show you all of the cool hangouts. Riku can show you the boring stuff later when he gets back from class."

Riku gave the redhead an annoyed look. "It's not boring, it's _useful_. The campus is huge and we should give them some idea of the best way to get from building to building."

"See?" Axel asked, leaning down to whisper to Roxas. "Super boring."

Roxas rolled his eyes.

"Alright, lets get this 'fun' tour over with," Riku said. "We'll end it in the Lounge, right? So I can find you all later."

"Yeah. Sure," Axel said flippantly. "Get us started, Demyx!"

Demyx grinned and strode forward, pulling open the double doors. "Welcome to East Destiny Community College! To begin our tour, we'll be walking through my personal favorite building, Art Hall! Directly to your left is our gymnasium, where yours truly has taken several dance classes and would gladly recommend them all."

They followed him into the building and down the hall, barely listening as he rambled on about the different classes offered and the teachers he liked. Axel was clearly bored and kept trying to draw Roxas into conversation, but the blond was doing a phenomenal job of ignoring him. Sora and Riku held hands as they walked side-by-side and playfully bumped into one another. Kairi was the only one paying any attention she she followed along after Demyx and occasionally asked questions.

Demyx glanced back and narrowed his eyes at the stragglers as he stopped walking."And here's where I once battled a fire-breathing dragon with nothing but a guitar pick and my fabulous hair," he said, raising his voice. "After it ate Axel and Riku whole because they're _buttheads._"

"What was that?" Axel asked, only hearing the last part of the story. He removed his arm from Roxas's shoulders to menacingly step forward.

Riku released Sora's hand to cross his arms over his chest and raise an eyebrow.

Demyx laughed uneasily and slowly backed up, raising his hands to fend off attack. "I-I was just joking around! Like, ha ha, very funny? Guys? _Stop looking at me like that_!"

Kairi and Roxas laughed as Axel grabbed Demyx in a headlock and vigorously rubbed his carefully style hair until Demyx's shrieks rose to such a volume that teachers stepped out of their classrooms to shush them. Axel let go of his friend after the first admonishment and grinned as the blond frantically tried to fix his hair back the way it belonged.

"Alright, now _I'll_ continue the tour. Time to get the fuck out of this building," Axel said.

Demyx pouted as his hair refused to stick up and flopped over the second he took his hands away.

"Lets hit Humanities and West Hall and then take them down to the Lounge," Riku suggested. He double checked his watch to ensure they had enough time. "I've got twenty-five minutes until class. Sora, I'll- Sora?" He frowned when he turned around to find his boyfriend missing. With some dread, he asked: "Where did Sora go?"

The others looked around as well, but none of them could see the brunet anywhere nearby.

Riku groaned in frustration. "Damn it, Sora..."

"Wow, twenty whole minutes. I think that's a new record," Kairi said with a heavy sigh. She frowned at Riku. "What were you thinking, letting go of his hand like that? Now we're going to have to spend the rest of the day looking for him!"

"I know, I just..." Riku paused to sigh heavily, more angry with himself than anything. "I didn't think he'd run off like that. Not again."

Roxas rolled his eyes and unsnapped his messenger bag. He dug around in it for a small stack of papers, which he handed out to each of them. "Lucky for you, I came prepared this time. These should make our search easier."

Demyx practically stuffed his fist in his mouth to choke back his laughter at the sight of the colored fliers. Each of them had a photo of Sora with his mouth wide open as he went to bite into a hamburger. Above the photo were the words: "Have you seen me?" The words beneath it read: "If found, please return to Roxas (my way more handsome twin brother)."

"_I_ helped make them," Axel said proudly.

"Of course you did," Riku muttered.

Kairi bit her lower lip to try and hide how much she wanted to smile at the goofy photo. She could only guess that it was a moment captured by Pence, whose skill at getting great moments on camera was second to none.

"Now we'll split up," Roxas said. "Kairi with Demyx, and I'll go with Axel." (The redhead suggestively wiggled his eyebrows, prompting Roxas to elbow him in the stomach.) "Riku, go with whoever you want until you go to class. Whoever finds him texts everyone else and we'll meet up in the Lounge. And for the love of everything good, _don't _let go of him."

The others murmured in agreement and then they split up to search.

* * *

><p>"So who do you think will find him this time?" Demyx asked.<p>

He and Kairi had been roaming the halls for fifteen minutes, looking for their missing friend and asking everyone they came across if they'd seen him. No one had.

"Riku, definitely," Kairi replied. "But, y'know, just for once _I'd _like to be the one who tracks him down and give him a piece of my mind. He makes me so mad when he does this!"

Demyx hid his amusement well. "What do you think he saw this time?"

Kairi shrugged. "It could be anything. Last time it was because he saw a cat. The time before that he said he thought he saw Riku, even though he was right next to him. Though at the time Riku's cousins were visiting and they all kind of look the same, except Loz, and the one Sora saw was Kadaj..." She paused to sigh heavily. "None of his excuses ever make sense and this time won't be any different."

They made their way around a small crowd hanging out in the hallway while waiting for class to start, and briefly paused to ask several of them if they'd seen Sora. There were some amused responses thanks to the photo, but none of them had seen him before.

Disappointed, they continued on and talked about whatever they could think of to pass the time. As ten o'clock rolled around, they saw fewer and fewer people.

"We could head down to the Lounge and relax for a while. There's probably more people there too," Demyx said.

Kairi thought it over for a minute. She didn't want to give up so soon, but with the sparsely populated halls she knew they wouldn't have much luck tracking him down. The campus was so big that with so few of them looking for him, they would probably have better luck staying in one place and waiting for him to wander by.

"We'll ask one more person and then we'll go," she decided. "How about whoever comes around that corner next?"

As if on cue, a dark-haired girl wearing a tank top and shorts turned the corner. Music played from the green headphones around her neck and was just loud enough to be heard from several feet away. She stopped when she saw them staring at her and reached down the ipod in her pocket and paused the music. "Hey there!" She greeted cheerfully. "You guys look a little lost."

"Actually, we lost a friend of ours. He ran off while we were distracted and we haven't seen him since," Kairi said, holding out her copy of the flier for the girl to see. As their fingers brushed, a static charge jumped between them. Kairi jumped, a little startled.

"Sorry, I've been doing that all day," the girl said with a little laugh. She took a look at the paper and laughed a little louder. She calmed herself quickly, but couldn't wipe the smile from her face. "This is the greatest picture of Sora I have ever seen. Did Roxas make this? And can I keep it?"

"You know Sora and Roxas?" Demyx asked in surprise.

She nodded. "Uh huh. I'm friends with their brother, Cloud. And I'm partners with Riku in Chem, so I hear stories about Sora _all_ the time. I'm Yuffie, by the way."

"I'm Demyx. And this is Kairi!"

"Nice to meet you both!" Yuffie said, sounding genuinely pleased. "I wish I could tell you I've seen him, but I haven't. I'll help you look for him though! My first class was canceled for the day, so I have some extra free time. Where did you lose him?"

"Over in Art Hall," Demyx told her. "But he's long gone from there by now. We were just about to go down to the Lounge and ask around there, since just about everyone's in class now."

Yuffie hummed thoughtfully. "That's a pretty good idea While you do that, I'm going to run over to the courtyard and ask around there. I'll take a look around West Hall and the library while I'm at it. Either of you wanna go with?"

Demyx shook his head.

Kairi bit her lower lip. Part of her wanted nothing more than to go with the other girl, to spend more time with her and find our how she met Sora and Roxas. She didn't seem like someone who would be friends with Cloud, who was quiet and had the tendency to keep to himself, but then again she didn't know that much about the oldest Strife brother or what kind of people he spent time with. After some internal debate, she decided it was best if she stayed with Demyx.

Before they split up, they exchanged numbers so they could call each other if either party found Sora. (Kairi blushed a little when Yuffie added a little heart after her name in her contacts page. She couldn't help it; Yuffie was charismatic and undeniably cute.) Yuffie set off on her own with a bounce to her step while Demyx led Kairi around the corner and down the flight of stairs to the first floor and then through a pair of double doors.

"So it's a cafeteria," Kairi said, looking around the room.

Most of the tables were round and accompanied by brightly colored plastic chairs. Some were raised up high and others had pieces of paper or cardboard jammed under a leg to prevent the table from wobbling back and forth. Pushed up against the windowed wall was a series of square and rectangular tables. On the opposite side of the room were cheap but comfortable vinyl seats and couches and low square tables. Flat-screen televisions were mounted on the walls, playing shows ranging from the news to children's cartoons. Directly across from the entrance were two places to get food – one was the college cafe and the other was a Pizza Palace.

"Basically," Demyx agreed. "C'mon, lets ask a few people and then sit. My feet are killing me."

* * *

><p>Kairi raced down the hall after Demyx, tossing apologies over her shoulder as the zipped past people. They'd been sitting in the Lounge for nearly twenty minutes before they got a call from Yuffie saying she found Sora <em>and <em>Riku on the third floor of West Hall, but that she couldn't stick around and wait for them because she had something she needed to go take care of.

They took the stairs, praying they weren't too late and that their friends hadn't left the hall.

"What was it this time, Sora?" They could faintly hear Riku ask.

"I thought I saw the prince."

"Sora..."

"I know it sounds crazy, but I really think it was him this time! Riku, you've got-"

"Sora! Riku!" Demyx yelled, interrupting whatever Sora was about to say. He panted loudly as he ran over to them, exhausted from their crazy dash through two buildings and up several flights of stairs.

Kairi jogged over to them, a little worse for wear than Demyx, and mildly annoyed that she didn't get to hear all of the conversation. What was Sora talking about? What prince? There was only one way to find out. "So what was it this time?" She asked, unintentionally copying Riku's earlier question. "Another cat? Or was it a dog this time?"

Sora laughed. "Nah, just thought I saw someone I know. Turns out it was just someone who looked like him, but by then I was lost so I just kept walking around. I figured I'd run into one of you again at some point. But how'd you two know we were up here? They way you came running over, you must've known."

"Yuffie told us," Demyx said. He was starting to breath normally, but still wasn't ready for longer sentences.

"Yuffie's here?" Sora asked, craning his neck to look up and down the hall for her.

Demyx shook his head. "Not anymore. She called to let us know where you are and then said she had to go do something. Oh, um, she has a message for you! Well, actually it's for Cloud. She said for you to tell him he better not forget about tomorrow."

"Alright, thanks. I'll remind him," Sora promised. "So where's Roxas and Axel? We have a tour to finish, don't we?"

Rolling his eyes, Riku made sure to hold tightly to Sora's hand as he guided them back downstairs where the remaining two members of their party were waiting for them.

Kairi let her mind wander as she quietly walked behind them. It wasn't the first time she'd overheard a strange conversation between Sora and Riku and she was sure it wouldn't be the last. Why had he told Riku he thought he saw a prince? And what was he a prince of? There wasn't any royalty on Cardinal. Why had he covered it up when she asked the same question? It wasn't like him.

It wasn't the right time to ask about it. She would have to wait.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>I rewrote the ending for this close to four times before I was happy with it. There was something about finding the right way to introduce Yuffie that posed a challenge for me, but I think I overcame it. (Even though it took nearly 3 weeks.)<p>

Honorary mention:

Kadaj and Loz - from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. (Also Yazoo, though he wasn't mentioned.)

Next Chapter: Darkness Begins to Rise


	5. Darkness Begins to Rise

Chapter 5: Darkness Begins to Rise

_Heart ducked and rolled to the side as a massive chunk of ice crashed where she'd just been standing. She quickly got back to her feet and continued to move as more shards of ice followed the first. She glanced at her attacker, a young woman dressed in a white, sleeveless turtleneck dress which split into several "petals" at the skirt, revealing a pale blue underskirt. While gloves wrapped up past her elbows and dainty strapped heels adorned her feet. Like Heart, she wore a mask over her eyes, though hers was white instead of pink._

_When the next attack flew her way, Heart retaliated with a ball of pink energy, which shattered the ice into a harmless spray of dust. Several more orbs floated around her, ready to shoot off when she needed them. She slid to a stop and faced her opponent. Heart thrust her hands forward, directing the orbs to gather into one massive one and zip towards the other woman._

_At the same time, the woman in white took a single step back and ducked down as she raised a wall of ice between them. It quickly thickened, but it was clear she was beginning to tire._

"_PEACE!"_

_A streak of orange collided with pink before it could strike the wall, causing a small colorful explosion which ripped up part of the ground, throwing grass and dirt into the air. When it cleared, a woman in orange was standing protectively in front of the one in white with an arrow of shimmering golden light notched in her bow._

"_That's cheating, Love!" Someone shouted from the sidelines._

_Heart glanced over to see Passion standing there with several other people. Her hands were on her hips and she was scowling at the orange-suited woman._

"_Well then, how about I even the odds?"_

_Heart caught sight of a confident, easy smile on a tan face framed by dark hair as her new partner ran over and joined her. Ire flared up inside of her. She didn't __**need**__ help. But before she could say anything, the battle began again._

* * *

><p>Kairi opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, every trace of sleepiness seeping out of her body to leave her wide awake and alert. She could hear her dad moving around downstairs, preparing breakfast as quietly as he could. High heels clacked across the linoleum floor, which meant her mom was up and about as well. From the room next to her she could hear Reno talking on the phone, but she couldn't make out what he was saying. Axel's room was silent, which made sense since he didn't have to be up at an early hour.<p>

"What the fuck...?" She groaned, rolling over and tightly shutting her eyes.

After days of being unable to remember her dreams, her wish had finally come true. Maybe she wasn't able to recall all of it, but the pieces she could made her regret ever wanting to remember them.

Was it too much to ask for some _normal_ dreams? Something that didn't involve girls in miniskirts battling each other? Really, it sounded more like something Reno would dream about.

When her alarm began to beep obnoxiously, she decided the only thing she could do for the moment was get up and get ready for school. She could dwell on her strange dreams later.

* * *

><p>Kairi wasn't the only one noticeably out of sorts that day.<p>

Olette dozed off in several of her classes and was unable to answer most of the questions her teachers asked. When asked later, she couldn't even tell Hayner what their assignment in Biology was. Selphie, who normally had a difficult time remaining quiet, slumped down in her seat and made herself as small as possible. Her smiles were strained, as if she had to force the muscles to work properly. Even Sora was a bit more distracted than usual and discreetly checked his phone throughout every class like he was anticipating an important call.

Kairi saw none of it.

But someone else _did._

Tidus caught up to her after the final bell and leaned against the wall of lockers while waiting for her to put away the books she didn't need.

"No practice today?" Kairi asked.

"Uh, no? It's Tuesday, Kai," Tidus said with a frown. "Are you feeling alright? You're not getting sick, are you?" He reached out to check her temperature with the back of his hand, but she batted it away with a small smile.

"I'm fine," she told him. "I just keep thinking it's Monday, is all. And I haven't been sleeping very well lately."

"Bad dreams?"

Kairi shook her head. "No, nothing like that. At least, I don't think." She hesitated a few seconds, which made Tidus begin to worry that there was something really wrong going on. "I just... I can't remember anything about them. I wake up knowing that I've been dreaming, but I can't think of what they were about. They feel important though. Like I _should_ remember. And then this morning..." She stared at the books in her arms, unable to meet his eyes. "I did remember. But I can't make heads or tails of what it was about, which I guess is how dreams normally are, but this feels _different._ I can't... I can't explain it. I don't know how."

Tidus didn't know what to say. He'd had some odd dreams and nightmares of his own, but he didn't think it was the same as what Kairi was experiencing. He spotted Wakka and some of his other teammates walking towards him and frantically tried to find something thoughtful to tell her.

"Hey, Tidus! You comin', man?"

"In a second!" Tidus yelled back.

"Go on, Ti. I've got to get home anyway. It's my turn to help cook dinner," Kairi said with a reassuring smile.

Tidus hesitated, concern weighing heavily in his heart. "Are you sure? We're just going to see a movie. I could skip and walk home with you if you want to talk some more."

"_Go,_" Kairi emphasized with a gentle push. "I'll be fine. This is something I have to figure out for myself." With a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, she turned and walked away.

As Tidus watched her leave, an idea sparked to life in his mind. He may not know how to help her, but he knew someone who could.

"Hey, Wakka, does Lulu still do that dream study stuff?"

* * *

><p>Yuffie Kisaragi may not have been a native of Destiny Island (and in fact had not lived on the island for very long), but she still knew her way around better than most. So, of course she never had a problem finding Seventh Heaven, a bar tucked away in downtown East Destiny.<p>

The building itself was one of the oldest in the area, and had hosted a multitude of businesses over the years. Most recently it'd been bought by a young woman hailing from Gaia, who transformed it from a failing cafe into a bar and became something of an overnight sensation with the college crowd.

Yuffie ignored the 'closed' sign on the glass front door and pushed it open. Her sneakers thudded softly on the dark wood floor, attracting the attention of the two people up at the front.

Behind the counter was Tifa Lockheart, the owner of the establishment. Her russet eyes were warm as she smiled at Yuffie. Sitting on one of the stools was Cloud Strife, the older brother of Sora and Roxas. Like his siblings, he had spiked up hair and blue eyes.

"Well this looks like a fun party," Yuffie remarked as she joined them. She slid onto a stool next to Cloud. "Where's everyone else?"'

"They have things to do," Cloud said.

Yuffie crossed her arms over her chest, pouting a little. "No fair. When am I going to get an assignment?"

"You already have one," Cloud replied.

"Yeah, but it's so _boring,_" Yuffie moaned. "And you've got Riku doing the same thing! Come on, Cloud, there's gotta be something I can do that doesn't involve sitting around and waiting for something to happen! I'll do _anything!_"

Cloud looked at her for a moment and then nodded. "Okay. I'll find something. Just be patient."

Yuffie cheered up at his words, knowing he wouldn't lie to her.

Tifa didn't look nearly so happy. "Now that we've gotten that out of the way, we have more important things to discuss. Like how quickly everyone is beginning to awaken." She reached under the counter and pulled out a newspaper, which she tossed down in front of Cloud, article side up.

Yuffie leaned over for a better look when she recognized it as the _Twilight Gazette_, which was the major newspaper of Twilight Town. On the front page was a blurry photo of a figure in orange and a headline reading: "Mysterious Warrior Spotted Again".

"Want to tell me when Love woke up?" Tifa asked crossly. "Or how about these two?" Again she reached under the counter, but that time she pulled out a tablet and turned the screen towards them. There was another photo, but it was a clear one of two men. One was a brunet in what appeared to be black leather and the other a blond in a long, gray trench coat.

"Brave and Fire Cross look good," Yuffie remarked. "Hey, do you think _I_ could pull off pants like that?"

"_Yuffie_..." Cloud said warningly.

"Is there anyone else you'd like to tell me about or am I going to have to search for myself?" Tifa demanded.

Cloud shook his head, just as Yuffie nodded and said: "Wild Thief's coming to visit soon."

Cloud groaned.

Tifa gave him a cross look.

"He's going to need some place to stay while he's here," Yuffie continued. "Tifa, you've got some space, right? Cuz I kind of _alreadytoldhimhecouldstaywithyou_."

Okay, so that really wasn't how she wanted to ask Tifa. Her original plan had involved a long, kind of absurd story about her landlord's abhorrence of pets of any kind and how he'd probably blow a gasket if she invited a guy with a tail to stay with her for a while. There was probably a lot of bargaining and pleading before getting Tifa to agree too.

Maybe coming right out and saying it was for the best.

Tifa closed her eyes, looking as though she was restraining herself from screaming. "Fine. He can stay here. But he's going to help me out around here! And so are you."

"Deal! You're the _best, _Tifa!" Yuffie exclaimed. She wondered if jumping over the counter to hug her friend would be too much. Judging by the look on her face, any sort of physical contact would push her over the edge, so she settled down on the bar stool and tried not to move around too much.

"It's already beginning," Cloud murmured, staring down at his hands.

"What is?" Tifa asked.

Cloud was silent, taking a moment to carefully choose his words. "Everyone is beginning to gather here, whether they remember the past or not. Our enemy has chosen this place as the final battleground. Can't you feel it? The dark energy brewing on this planet acts as a beacon, drawing everyone in. We don't have long to prepare."

Silence settled heavily over the room.

Tifa turned her tablet around and morosely swiped through articles, more to give herself something to do than to actually look for anything. She'd already read through all of them.

Cloud raised his head. "I should go. I promised I'd pick up some pizza's for dinner. Yuffie, walk with me." It wasn't a request.

"Kay," Yuffie said, hopping off the bar stool. Her stomach churned uneasily. Cloud singling her out was very rarely a good thing. "See you later, Tifa!"

Tifa bid them farewell, spending a few more minutes looking over articles from different worlds before putting away the device and starting to prepare for the evening crowd.

Yuffie obediently followed Cloud outside and around the side of the building where he had parked his motorcycle. "Sooo... what's going on? What do you not want Tifa to know?"

"It's nothing like that," Cloud said. "I just want to talk to you about Kairi."

And _there_ it was.

Yuffie wanted to be anywhere else in that moment. She did not want to have that conversation with anyone, but especially not Cloud. She knew exactly what he was going to say. She'd heard it all before – many times.

She clenched her hands and turned her back to him. "I know, Cloud. I'm being careful," she said, trying to keep her voice from trembling and betraying how close she was to breaking down. "I'm keeping my distance, just like I promised. You don't have to keep reminding me."

"Sora says you saw her yesterday."

Yuffie closed her eyes, remembering turning a corner to find a beautiful redhead standing there with a familiar determined look on her face. She could picture every little detail; from the freckles dotting her nose, cheeks, and shoulders to the scuff marks on her shoes to the way her blue-violet eyes lit up when she said she'd help them find Sora.

That one chance encounter was enough to bring back everything she felt for Kairi. Maybe it even made it worse.

"It was one slip-up," Yuffie said, struggling to keep from crying. "It won't happen again. Anyway, I've got some stuff to do, so I better get to it. Call me if anything comes up."

"Yuf-"

"Bye!" Yuffie shouted as she ran away, not letting him finish whatever he was going to say. She ran hard, blinking back the tears threatening to spill down her cheeks.

She knew she was being irrational. She didn't even know Kairi anymore and even if she did there was no guarantee that they would still be friends or anything else. Actually, she wasn't even sure if Kairi counted her as a friend in the past.

Still, it was a new life full of new choices and possibilities. As long as there was still hope, Yuffie would keep trying.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>Pssst, I finally got a Beta reader to look things over from here on out, checking for spellinggrammar and making sure things aren't too confusing. I have the greatest best friend!

Honorary mention:

**Lulu **- from Final Fantasy X / X-2

Next chapter: The Familiarity of Strangers


	6. The Familiarity of Strangers

Chapter 6: The Familiarity of Strangers

_Her name was White Rose and she was supposedly her perfect match. In a purely platonic sense._

_Heart scowled as she watched her own brother laugh at something the female Knight was saying. Clenching her hands, she turned away from the sight and started to walk towards the edge of the outer garden which looked out over the sea. The only one who noticed was her oldest friend and Guardian, who immediately jogged over to her to talk._

"_I hate her," she mumbled when he was within earshot._

"_You don't even know her," he responded with a roll of his eyes. "Look, I know you don't handle new people suddenly coming in and trying to be all buddy-buddy with you, but she deserves a chance. I think the two of you will work really well together once you, you know, learn to work together."_

_Heart stubbornly refused to look at him._

_He heaved a sigh. "I'm not saying you need her. I'm not even saying you need to be best friends with her! Just __**please**__, try to work with her. That's all I'm asking. It'll only make you stronger and more able to protect the prince and everyone else. Hey..." He reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, making her look at him. "If you won't do it for me, then at least do it for the prince. He's really happy now that you're working with the Knights, but he's worried about you. And he's not the only one."_

_A strong gust of wind kicked up, tugging at Heart's black cape. The two of them turned towards the ocean where dark clouds were beginning to gather in the distance._

"_Did Savage Nymph or Strength say anything about a storm to you?" Heart asked._

_Her friend shook his head. "Not to me."_

_Heart frowned. "Lets head back to the castle. I have a bad feeling about this, Sora."_

* * *

><p>When Kairi left her house that morning, she found Tidus waiting for her on her front steps. That wasn't too unusual. They walked to school most mornings when he didn't go in early to help out with the pool the blitzball team used for practice. What <em>was <em>unusual was that he was sitting outside instead of walking in to say "hello" to the rest of the family. It was something of a joke that the doorbell was the most useless addition to their house, since no one ever used it.

He looked up as she walked down the steps and stopped next to him. "Good morning!"

"Morning," Kairi responded. "Why are you sitting out here?"

"I got here as Reno was leaving and he said you were on your way out, so I figured I'd just wait here for you," Tidus said. "Ready to go? I figured we could talk about, y'know, _stuff _on our way."

"Stuff?" Kairi repeated in confusion. "What kind of – oh." She should have known he wouldn't let her get away with not talking more about the dreams, no matter that there wasn't anything he could do or say to help. She wished she hadn't said anything about them.

Tidus stood up and offered her his arm, which she accepted with a tired smile. Despite how silly they may have looked with their arms linked, they started to walk down the sidewalk together.

"I know you said you were gonna figure this out on your own, but I called Lulu for advice yesterday. She used to help me out with my weird dreams and I was hoping she would be able to help you too," Tidus said.

Kairi looked up at him curiously. "I didn't know that. What sort of dreams did you have?"

"It wasn't anything _really _strange. Just a big city that was all lit up at night. The only thing that bothered me about it was how many times I had it."

"So how did you get them to stop?" Kairi inquired.

"I didn't. I still have them, but now it's, I dunno, easier," Tidus admitted. "We tried a bunch of different stuff, but in the end just talking about my dreams was the most helpful. I spent hours describing them, talking about everything I could remember. When her and Wakka started dating, I started writing it all down in a journal. That helps too."

Kairi sighed, staring down at her feet. "I wouldn't even know where to start. I can't even remember most of the ones I've had."

"Well, did you have a dream last night? Maybe you could start there," Tidus suggested.

Kairi nodded and, after a pause to gather her thoughts, began describing the world she found herself in when she dreamed. She talked about the colorful gardens and the high, gated walls surrounding them, separating them from the rest of the world. She spoke of the sea shimmering under sunlight and the cool air that blew in from it as dark clouds gathered in the distance.

When it came to telling him about the people she saw there, Kairi could only describe in colors and muted feelings. She also remembered the strange names, of course.

"Sounds like code names," Tidus said. "Maybe you were some kind of superhero in a past life!"

Kairi laughed. "Come on! Be serious!"

"I am! About the past life thing anyway. Though I guess it could be because of the weird things that have been happening lately. Like that mysterious warrior Pence was talking about at lunch the other day! The one who started showing up in Twilight Town and fighting these crazy monsters that suddenly appeared! No one knows who she is or what the monsters are, but apparently it's not the first time something that this has happened. According to people on the internet, anyway."

Kairi didn't remember hearing anything like that, but there was always a chance she just hadn't been paying attention whenever it was brought up. Things like that weren't something that interested her. It was just too far-fetched.

"It doesn't matter. They're just silly dreams," Kairi decided. She pulled Tidus to a stop and stood on tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek. "Thanks for talking to me. You're right. It does help."

"Anytime," Tidus said, giving her a fond smile.

They continued walking, arm-in-arm, all the way to school. They didn't talk any more about their dreams, choosing to focus on real life and predicting how much teasing they would get from Sora and Selphie for strolling into the schoolyard together.

* * *

><p>She was on her way home when her cell phone chimed.<p>

_Need some advice. Wanna get ice cream?_

Kairi didn't even need to ask where they were going for ice cream; she already knew. She sent Demyx a message saying she'd see him there and then turned back around to go into town.

It wasn't often that Demyx asked her for help. Usually he stuck with Axel or Roxas, so they must have been busy with something or weren't answering their messages. That or it was something they would undoubtedly tease him for. Either way, it couldn't have been too serious if it was something he was willing to talk about in public.

Before she knew it, Kairi was walking into _Frozen_, the local favorite shop to get a variety of icy treats. Demyx was already sitting in one of the booths and was poking at his bowl of sherbert. After ordering a simple strawberry cone (and spending a minute at the counter talking to Kristoff, who looked as though he was seconds away from destroying the jukebox, which was playing the same song over and over and over again), she joined Demyx at his table.

"So what's going on?" She asked.

Demyx lifted his head and looked around as if to make sure no one was trying to listen in. It was just the three of them and he doubted Kristoff was bored enough to start listening in on conversations. He leaned over the table anyway and motioned for Kairi to do the same. "I, um, _Imetsomeone_."

Kairi raised an eyebrow and slowly leaned back as she translated his slurred words. "You met someone?"

Demyx nodded quickly and then began to spill every little detail he could think of. "We have Literature together. And it's not that I've never noticed him before, because I have! How could I not? He's _gorgeous_. And he's so smart, too! Probably the smartest person at East Destiny. Sometimes it looks like he's not paying attention because he's always reading but he actually is paying attention because whenever the teachers ask him something he just gives the answer like it's no big deal! No pause to think about it or anything! He's so cool..." He sighed longingly. "And his hair! It's this sort of blue color – and you know how much I love blue – and it looks so soft! And today when he walked into class he just looked so... so... I don't know, Kai! I can't describe it. And now I can't stop thinking about him!"

"Demyx," Kairi gently interrupted, reaching across the table to rest her hand on his to ensure she had his full attention. "Have you ever talked to him? Do you even know his name?"

"Yeah..." Demyx's expression turned dreamy and Kairi knew she'd lost him again.

The bell above the door jingled as someone pushed it open and Kairi looked away from her friend to see who it was. She was expecting a parent with their children or maybe some of her friends from school, but instead she saw a familiar girl with short black hair wearing shorts and a purple shirt.

"Yuffie?" Kairi asked, half rising to be seen better.

The other girl looked over, surprise clearly visible on her face. For a split second, it looked as though she was about to bolt, but then she smiled and waved before turning to give Kristoff her order. She joined them soon after.

"Hello again, Demyx and Kairi," Yuffie said, sliding into the booth next to the redhead. "I'm not interrupting a date or anything, am I?"

Kairi scrunched her nose. "No way! Demyx is basically another brother. Besides, the fact that he invited me here to talk about his giant crush on someone in his class would make that really awkward."

Yuffie grinned. "You mean Zexion, right?"

Demyx snapped out of his daydreams at the sound of his crush's name. "Huh? Where?"

Yuffie and Kairi both laughed.

"He's not here, Dem," Kairi told him. "So, Zexion, huh? How come Yuffie knows about this before I do?"

Demyx's eyes went wide as he looked from Kairi to the grinning newcomer sitting next to her. "Yuffie, no! You can't tell that story! Please!"

Yuffie thought it over for a moment and then shook her head. "Sorry, but you won't tell it right." She looked to Kairi and began her story. "This afternoon I was walking around because I've got some time to kill before class, like always, when I hear what sounds like someone falling down an entire flight of stairs! Naturally, I run over to see what's going on and help out whoever it is and who do I find? Demyx, laying on the floor and moaning in pain, with his stuff scattered all over the place. And who's standing there to help him out? None other than local genius Zexion Shade, who also happens to be the biggest social recluse at East Destiny! Seriously, I've only ever seen him talk to, like, two people who aren't teachers. He's a little odd. Anyway, Zexion helps Demyx stand up, but the second Demyx sees who it is, he turns bright red and makes the strangest sound I have ever heard a human make and then lets go of Zexion's hand and falls backwards. So then he's just laying there passed out because he's bumped his head and the man of his dreams is standing over him trying to help. I had to help Zexion carry him to that new nurses building so they could make sure he was okay."

"It was the most mortifying experience I've ever had," Demyx said solemnly. "And that's why I need your help, Kairi! I don't want him to think I'm some clumsy idiot!"

Yuffie snorted. "You're not an idiot. I barely know you, but I know that. And Zexion doesn't either. He seemed really worried about you."

Kairi knew there was little they could say to get Demyx to see it. He was too caught up in being miserable and convincing himself that he didn't stand a chance, which meant she was going to have to distract him by giving him some sort of plan to follow. "Do you have any ideas about what you want to do?"

Demyx balked. "Um, well, remember when Axel was trying to get Roxas's attention? I was-"

"No," Kairi said, holding up one hand. "I should smack you for even _considering _the stupid stuff my brother used to do. Honestly, I'm still amazed Roxas ever saw through his bullshit and gave him a chance, because half of what Axel did was really creepy and weird. If you want to impress Zexion, you'll have to do something different."

"I could teach you parkour so next time you'll go down the stairs a little more gracefully," Yuffie suggested. "I'm getting really good at it."

"_No_," Kairi said firmly, giving Yuffie an annoyed look. It failed the moment she glanced into playful brown eyes. She quickly looked back across the table at Demyx, who failed to notice the exchange. "No crazy plots, Dem. You just need to be yourself. If he doesn't like you for who you are, then what's the point?"

"But I really, _really _want him to like me!" Demyx moaned.

"Then we'll figure out how to show him just how awesome you are," Kairi promised. "But first you need to promise me two things. The first is that you will not take any advice from Axel. Or Sora, for that matter. Just don't. And second, you've got to actually _talk _to Zexion."

"About what?" Demyx asked.

Kairi rolled her eyes. "How about you thank him for taking you to get your head looked at? You also have a class together. A class I seem to recall you being really good at. You could start with either of those."

"Maybe," Demyx murmured unsurely. "But what if-"

"No. No 'buts'. No 'what if's'. Just talk to him," Kairi said, throwing up both hands in frustration. "Say hello. Ask him how his day has been. Ask to borrow a pencil. I don't care if you strike up a conversation about the fuckin' weather. Dem, you're good at talking once you get started. You'll do fine."

"And you're fun," Yuffie spoke up. "If anyone needs a little fun in their life, it's Zexion." She shifted, which brought her bare arm in contact with Kairi's for a split second. A thrilling tingle shot through the limb and she was tempted to do it again, but instead she slid out of the booth. "Sorry to run like this, but I've gotta get some ice cream across town to my friend before she starts to worry I've gotten myself into trouble again. It was nice to see you both again. Good luck, Demyx!"

Demyx had resumed poking at his melted sherbert. "Yeah. Thanks."

Yuffie raised her hand in a brief wave, collected her packages of ice cream from Kristoff, and left.

"Kairi?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you really think he'll like me?"

Kairi took a moment to look at him, taking in his slumped shoulders and drooping hair, which enhanced the sad but hopeful expression on his face. She smiled at him sincerely. "He's going to love you, Demyx."

It took a few minutes, but slowly Demyx's lips curled up in a pleased smile. Things were starting to look bright and sunny in his world once again.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>I honestly hadn't planned on any Disney characters making appearances, but it could be fun having them in the background running stores and whatnot. And as sick as I am of seeing Frozen stuff everywhere, I still really adore Kristoff and I'm glad I changed my mind and went with him rather than Anna.<p>

And since the ice cream shop is a reoccurring place, I had to make up some background info on it.

_Frozen_ - owned and operated by sisters Elsa and Anna Arendelle. Kristoff finds himself running the counter more often than he'd like because he has a hard time saying 'no' to Anna. The decor is primarily white and blue, with the exception of the jukebox in the corner, which is black. (And is also a constant source of ire to Kristoff, as it often gets stuck on repeat.)

Next chapter: It's Time to Fight


	7. It's Time to Fight

Chapter 7: It's Time to Fight

_Meeting them was a great honor. That was what her momma told her after two strangers showed up on their doorstep. They spoke of other worlds and creatures of darkness and many things she didn't fully understand, but the worst of it was when they said it was her destiny to become a great soldier._

"_But momma, I don't wanna go fight!" She said as tears streamed down her face and dripped off of her chin. She made no move to wipe them away. "P-please don't make me!"_

_Her mother, a beautiful woman with red hair and kind violet eyes, turned to face her. Her features softened when she saw how distressed her daughter was. "Oh Kairi..." she murmured, walking over to kneel down and wrap her up in a warm, loving hug. "It's going to be alright. No one is going to make you fight. You are going to be a very special kind of soldier; one who uses magic to protect the people she loves. But that doesn't mean you have to fight. There are other ways to protect people."_

_Kairi pulled away to look up at her mom. "R-really? I won't have t-to fight?"_

"_Not if you don't want to," promised her mom._

_The little girl finally wiped away her tears using her sleeve and smile. "Okay. I can do it."_

* * *

><p><em>Kairi tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she poured over a massive tome on the history of her world and the royal family which had ruled over it for generations. It was by far the least interesting thing she had ever read, but it was information she needed to know in order to do her duty as the primary Soldier of her world.<em>

_Years had passed since she first learned of her destiny and she was no longer a frightened little girl. Still, her mom's words were truthful; fighting was not the only way to protect those she cared about_

_She glanced up when she heard several people enter the library. She could recognize two of the voices. One was Riku, who taught her combat and strategy and the other was Sora, who specialized in magic. The two of them were Guardians and were the closest she had to friends._

_The two men soon came into view and with them was a girl around Kairi's age with pale blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. Sora was smiling so widely that Kairi was instantly wary of what he was up to._

"_Kairi! I'd like you to meet Naminé. She's going to be training and studying with you from now on," he said happily._

_Kairi stood and held out her hand. "It's nice to meet you."_

_Naminé hesitantly grasped the offered hand. "Yes... It's nice to meet you as well."_

* * *

><p>It was almost a normal day.<p>

Classes went on as they usually did. There was a test in Calculus, which Kairi was farily confident she'd aced, and a pop quiz in Health that no one was really concerned about. History was spent reviewing what was expected from their projects and getting together with their partners to work on them. Kairi ended up sitting with Sora and Tidus, as Roxas was absent that day, Sora had said something about him having a twenty-four hour stomach bug, which was believable since sickness was the only reason his twin would ever miss school.

Olette wasn't around either – a fact Kairi didn't pick up on until lunch when she saw not one, but two empty spaces near Hayner and Pence. She felt kind of bad about that. Olette may have been closer to Roxas, but that didn't mean Kairi didn't enjoy her company.

Pence was the only one who noticed when she and Tidus joined them at the table. Hayner was preoccupied with viciously stabbing his cafeteria food, annoyed that two of his best friends had ditched them for the day. Selphie was sleepily leaning against Irvine, who had one arm around her to help keep her upright, though he didn't look any more well rested. Wakka had yet to reach their table.

Realizing that Pence was looking for someone willing to talk, Kairi made sure to have Tidus sit closer to the brunet. She wasn't in much of a chatting mood that day, and thankfully Tidus recognized that fact and quickly struck up a conversation with him. While the two boys talked, she pulled out her notebook and finally began to write down her dreams.

Kairi was in the middle of describing how much older Sora and Riku looked when Pence said something that made her stop and look up.

And she wasn't the only one.

"Did you say 'monsters'?" Selphie asked, suddenly looking wide awake.

Pence nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! People are saying they were attacked in downtown last night by what they're describing as 'animated white track suits'."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Track suits?" She repeated incredulously.

"I know, I know. It sounds crazy. But look at this!" Pence said, holding up his phone so everyone could get a look at the screen. On it was a blurry image of a woman in orange kicking a hooded white creature.

Selphie made a croaking sound as she grabbed his phone and frantically examined the photo.

"Who's the girl?" Irvine questioned.

"No one knows," Pence replied with a shrug. He kept his hand out for his phone and then dropped it when it became clear Selphie wasn't returning it any time soon. "There have been plenty of suggestions, of course. Most people believe it's a publicity stunt of some kind since she's also been seen in Twilight Town, but I don't think that's what's really going on. Too many people have gotten hurt from it. _I_ think she's a hero. She's got to be."

An uneasy feeling swirled in the pit of Kairi's stomach. She needed to get away. She gently nudged Tidus to get his attention and then whispered: "I'm going to go find Sora. I need to talk to him."

Tidus nodded. "Okay. Let me know how it goes."

Kairi quickly packed up her pen and notebook and slipped away while Selphie was busy drilling Pence for more information. The last thing she heard was Pence begging the girl to _please_ return his phone and stop waving it around.

As she walked, Kairi gathered her thoughts and began to plan what she wanted to say. There were so many questions racing circles in her mind that it was difficult to decide where to start. And would he even know what she was talking about? There was every chance that the strange things she'd overheard him say was purely coincidental. Maybe her weird dreams were influenced by the appearance of the mysterious warrior, like Tidus suggested, and fueled by the secrets she thought Sora and Riku were keeping.

"...don't think it's a good idea to pull the others in yet."

Or maybe she was exactly right.

Kairi ducked back around the corner when she approached the hall Sora used whenever he wanted to call Riku. The brunet was pacing back and forth, every movement screaming frustration. Normally when she went to find him, he was all smile and laughs, but there wasn't a trace of merriment to be found.

"I know Olette can't keep fighting them by herself but-!" He exhaled loudly and she heard a squeaking sound as he pivoted on his heel. "Okay. We'll talk about it tomorrow. But not at the Secret Spot! There's something off about that place lately. I can't tell if it's bad or good." He paused to give a little laugh. "Yeah, probably not good. Anyway, I'll see you after school. Unless you've changed your mind about going out for dinner?"

Riku must have responded positively, because Kairi could heard the joy in Sora's voice as he said his goodbyes and hanged up. Before she could step around the corner to confront him, the bell signaling the end of lunch screeched through the halls.

Kairi cursed under her breath at the unfortunate timing. She hadn't wanted to wait until after school, but she no longer had a choice. The only benefit was that she would have a little more time to talk to him, since Riku's last class didn't end until five.

* * *

><p>Pence honestly didn't know what was going on anymore. In the past few days, the dynamic of their group had gone through a massive change and it wasn't one for the better. Suddenly, half of his friends were distant and when they did smile or get involved in the conversation, he got the impression they were forcing themselves to be cheerful. Added to that were the strange attacks by unknown creatures, which even he didn't have a logical explanation for.<p>

It hadn't escaped his attention that it all started at the same time as those attacks.

The moment the final bell rang, Pence set off on a mission. He quickly found that Sora, Selphie, and Irvine had taken off for home without a word. Hayner was in no mood to talk to anyone (and probably wouldn't be until he went to see Roxas and Olette). Then Tidus and Wakka excused themselves for practice when he approached them.

Kairi was at her locker when he found her.

"Wanna go down to the art room with me?" He asked before she could slip away as well. "I need to pick up the photo's from our last get-together."

The annoyed expression on the redhead's face morphed to one of surprise. Pence supposed he couldn't blame her. It wasn't often they spent time together without the rest of the crew around too. But then she smiled and nodded.

With Pence in the lead, they turned and walked back into the school, somehow getting past the crowd without much trouble. Twice Kairi had to move out of the way or else get run over by someone so frantic to leave that they weren't looking where they were going.

"I got some pretty good shots that I can't wait to show you! I even captured Demyx's volleyball to the face _perfectly_," Pence bragged. If there was one thing he was most proud of, it was his ability to capture candid photo's of his friends.

Kairi giggled. "You'll have to make extra copies of that one. I'm sure Demyx will turn it into his life mission to have it destroyed."

Pence laughed as they turned down the hall to where all of the art classes were held. Various paintings, drawings, and photos were on the walls, showcasing the talents of the students. "I get the feeling all I really need to do is keep any copies from the hands of Axel and Sora. Those two are bound to use it to endlessly torment him."

"Yeah, they would," Kairi replied. For a moment, she looked greatly amused by the thought, but then a shadow darkened her face and her smile faded.

Pence frowned. "Is everything okay?"

Kairi quickly snapped out of it. "Of course! So, what other pictures did you get? Anything embarrassing of Axel?"

"Nah, not this time," Pence replied. He pushed open the door to the art room, which at first glance appeared blissfully empty. A wave of disappointment crashed over him when he spotted a thin girl sitting on a stool in front of one of the easels, paintbrush in hand. She wore a school supplied apron over her uniform to prevent too much paint from splattering on her clothes, and her pale blonde hair was pulled back.

"Hey, Naminé," he greeted.

Next to him, Kairi gave a startled gasp as her eyes locked onto his friend.

Naminé looked away from her work and smiled at him. "Hello, Pence. I just wrapped up the finishing touches, if you'd like to see."

Pence's eyes lit up as he hurried over to her. Her painting was part of their final project of the year and she'd been working on it since the beginning of the year. He was one of the few people who had gotten to see her progress and offer advice every step of the way, despite preferring an entirely different medium. "Oh wow..." He breathed, awestruck when he saw the finished project. "It looks amazing, Naminé!"

She blushed at the praise. "Thank you." She glanced over at Kairi, who was hovering uncertainly in the doorway. "You shouldn't keep your friend waiting. I think Rapunzel put your camera back in your box. She promises she'll bring you some of her home baked cookies tomorrow."

Pence walked over to the cube-like shelves and slid out his blue box so he could reach inside for his camera and envelopes of developed photos. He could hear Naminé getting up and walking to the sink to carefully rinse out her paintbrushes and palette. He felt kind of bad for his disappointment at seeing her, but he _had _wanted a chance to talk to Kairi alone. Still, he couldn't help but think of all the times he and Naminé had walked home together after staying after class to work on various art projects.

He sighed as he made a decision, his shoulders slumping. There would be other times to find out what was bothering his friends. Turning, he put a smile on his face. "Naminé, I'd like you to meet Kairi."

* * *

><p>An unnerved as she'd been at first to find out Naminé was a real person and not just a figment of her imagination, Kairi soon found herself relaxing around the dainty blonde. The more she listened to her and Pence tell stories, the less she equated her with the Naminé in her dreams. Sure, physically they looked impossibly similar, but personality wise they were two entirely different people. The Naminé walking alongside of her was warm and prone to giggling. If there was a distance to her, it was due to shyness rather than the reserved aloofness of dream-Naminé.<p>

Kairi began to laugh and tell stories of her own, thoroughly enjoying the reactions she was able to pull from the artists as she described a particularly memorable tale involving her brothers and their old cranky aunt. Even Pence was captivated by it, though he'd been present for some of the story.

The three of them were so caught up in their conversation, none of them noticed the screaming until some woman bumped into Naminé and sent her crashing to the ground. Pence immediately stooped down to help her while Kairi looked around with a critical eye.

The streets were disturbingly empty for a Thursday evening.

A sudden chill crept down Kairi's spine. "Guys, we need to- _watch out!_" She shrieked, instinctively running in front of them to protect them from the white creature that suddenly appeared. She swung her schoolbag with all her might and knocked it back several feet, but more were already starting to swarm on their location.

"Kairi, we have to run!" Pence said as he and Naminé stood back up. He reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards an alley that lead to the next street over. "This way!"

Kairi didn't hesitate to follow him, but before they could get very far there was a new monster blocking their path with a samurai sword. Heat raced through Kairi's veins as they were forced to a halt, blocked on both sides. Static roared to life in her ears as she stepped protectively in front of her friends.

"I won't let you hurt them," she said, her voice deceptively calm.

It felt as though someone else was in control of her body as she closed her eyes and drew forth her inner strength. Warm pink light washed over her, transforming her into someone else. Someone familiar.

When the light faded and she opened her eyes, Kairi knew without looking that she was garbed in the same clothing she wore in her dreams. She could feel her hair bound tightly on either side of her head, just as she could feel the black mask covering her eyes without hindering her vision. Her zippered pink dress was the same as always, but in place of the cape was a simple black hood.

"Not today," Heart Soldier coldly said, holding up one gloved hand to blast the monster into oblivion. She turned and did the same to the "animated track suits" behind them, dissolving most of them and sending the rest scurrying away to wherever they came from.

She stared after them for a moment and then shook her head, snapping out of her daze. As she lowered her hand, Kairi's clothes shimmered away, changing back to her school uniform.

For a moment, there was silence between them as they fought past their shock.

Pence recovered first. "Okay. That was weird."

Kairi wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or cry. "Weird doesn't even _begin_ to cover it," she said shakily. She was unable to bring herself to look at them, too afraid by what she might see.

"Hey," a soft voice asked, followed by an even softer touch at her elbow, which drew her eyes to the petite girl, "Are you alright?"

Kairi opened her mouth to say "yes", but what came out instead was: "I don't know."

"Well... If you need anyone to talk to, we're here for you," Pence said.

Kairi finally looked at both of them and felt almost overwhelmed by their earnest gazes. She had some difficulty swallowing before she spoke again. "Thank you. Both of you."

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>I'd like to give a special shout-out to my best friend, KagsChann, for putting up my last minute nonsense and continuing to be an awesome beta!<p>

Next chapter: Reveal of an Artist


	8. Reveal of an Artist

**Fragmented Memories**

Chapter 8: Reveal of an Artist

_Within two months of meeting Naminé, Sora brought yet another Soldier to train with them. She was a spunky brunette with green eyes who wore a short yellow dress in her transformed state. Not long after that, the two Guardians decided it was time to meet the one they were born to protect._

_The three girls stood side-by-side, waiting for Sora to finish inspecting them while Riku stood nearby and rolled his eyes at his partner._

"_Sora, they look fine," he said as the brunet reached out to fix an imaginary hair straying from one of Heart's hair buns. "Leave the girls alone. They're ready for this."_

_Sora backed off to go stand at Riku's side._

_Heart self-consciously patted her hair._

_Riku gave her a reassuring smile and then gestured for all of them to follow him. He led them down a long corridor to the heavy side door leading to the throne room. A tall man with dreadlocks moved aside to let them pass, but kept a steady eye on them until they were on the other side._

_The King and Queen sat on their thrones, looking as radiant as the world they ruled, even when wearing what could be considered casual next to their normal clothing. The Prince stood next to the Queen, quiet and reserved._

"_Your Majesties, we would like to introduce you to the three Soldier's we've selected to protect His Royal Highness, Prince Ienzo," Sora said, for once managing not to fumble over the proper words. He motioned for Heart to step forward first. "This is Lady Kairi, the Soldier of Heart, chosen by this magnificent world."_

_Heart carefully curtsied, keeping her head bowed in respect. _

"_We also have Lady Naminé of Traverse Town on Cardinal, who is Peace Soldier."_

_Peace stepped forward and elegantly curtsied._

"_And finally Lady Selphie, hailing all the way from Trabia on the planet Centra, who is Passion Soldier."_

_Passion bounced forward, all smiles as she bowed, eliciting a sigh of frustration from Riku. While the King and Queen began to welcome them to their kingdom and thanking them for all of their hard work, Heart took a chance to glance up at Prince Ienzo, who was watching them with undisguised curiosity._

* * *

><p>Kairi marched to school, determined to get some answers from her friend. No longer did she believe her dreams were just the product of her hyperactive imagination; not after the events of the evening before.<p>

It didn't take her long to find her friends. They were standing around in the same spot as always, relaxing in the slight shade of a cluster of palm trees while waiting for the first bell to ring. Even from a distance she could tell that Hayner was in much better spirits, as Roxas and Olette were back by his side along with Pence. Nearby, Selphie and Irvine were laughing at whatever Wakka was telling them. The only ones missing were Sora and Tidus.

"Where is he?" Kairi bitterly muttered to herself. It figured that the one person she specifically wanted to talk to was nowhere to be seen. At least Roxas was around. She could always ask him to pass on a message to his twin.

"Kairi?"

The redhead jumped in surprise and whirled around to face the person who said her name. She was amazed to see Naminé standing no more than three feet away. "Oh! Good morning!"

Namine shyly smiled. "Good morning. I just wanted to thank you again for yesterday. You really saved our lives!"

"I- um..." Kairi bit her tongue. She almost said she hadn't meant to save them, but that wasn't right. Fighting the monsters had been the furthest thing from her mind when they got trapped in that alley. It was just some strange instinctive reaction that led to her transforming and vanquishing the threat. "You're welcome."

"What's this? You're not running around playing superhero without me, are you? And here I thought we were best friends!" Tidus joked as he walked over to them. He smiled at Namine. "Hey there!"

Namine stammered a greeting in return, a light blush painting her cheeks. "S-she just pulled me out of the way of a speeding bicyclist is all. So, um, thanks again. I'll see you later."

Before Kairi could stop her, the blonde ran off.

"Huh. Well that was strange," Tidus remarked, watching her until she was out of sight. "What was that about, anyway? You really save her from a speeding bicycle?"

"Not exactly. I walked home with her and Pence yesterday and we have a sort of... encounter," Kairi said.

"Encounter?" Tidus repeated, narrowing his eyes. "Who hurt you? I'll kick their ass!"

"It's nothing like that!" Kairi hurried to explain. "Do you remember those monsters you and Pence have been talking about? We were surrounded by a bunch of them and, well... Lets just say I don't think my dreams are _dreams_. I'm starting to think they're memories."

Tidus looked at her with wide eyes. "Wow. So, when you say memories...?"

Kairi laughed, but it was without humor. "Yeah. I had one messed up past life. And apparently it's not over." She paused to look around and make sure no one was listening in. She reached out and pulled Tidus closer, lowering her voice when she spoke again. "I _transformed_ last night. Like a literal transformation. But it was weird. I didn't feel like I was in control of my own body. All I could do was watch as these waves of pink energy shot out of my hands and destroyed those things. And then it just... all went away. When I could move on my own again, I was back to normal."

"You _really_ need to talk to Sora," Tidus said after a moment of silence."He's been in your dreams a few times, right? Maybe he knows something about what's been going on."

"That's what I think too," Kairi said as the first bell screeched, warning them to get to homeroom. The two of them slowly began migrating towards the building. "I'll have to catch him some other time though. It doesn't look like he's here today."

"Call him after school. Or tell Roxas you need to talk to him," Tidus recommended.

Kairi nodded in agreement. "I will. But I wonder if there's someone else I need to talk to first... Are you doing anything after school today?"

Tidus shook his head. "Not today."

"Good. Meet me after class."

* * *

><p>Naminé was minding her own business, carefully inserting her painting into a frame so it would be ready for the upcoming Art Show. It was still two weeks away, but there was something nice about avoiding the last minute rush to get things done, especially with something like a painting. There were still colored drawings she needed to get done; a difficult thing when she had yet to find the right subject.<p>

She sighed and stepped back to get a better look at her work. She eyed it critically for a few minutes and then smiled, pleased with the way it turned out. Humming, Naminé picked up the framed painting and went to put it where it would be safe until the Art Show. As she entered one of the side rooms, she heard the door open.

"Okay, so _why_ are we in the art room, exactly?"

"Shush, Tidus. Hello? Naminé?"

Naminé gasped softly when she heard Kairi calling for her, stunned that the other girl had sought her out so soon. "I-I'm in the back!" She stammered in reply. "I'll be out in a minute!"

Kairi spoke quietly to her friend, but Naminé couldn't make out what was being said. Trembling, she set down her painting and spent a few minutes trying to calm herself down. She breathed in and out deeply and then brushed off her skirt and tugged on the bottom hem of her shirt before she left the tiny room.

Naminé noticed Kairi first and then her gaze slid over to the boy standing next to her. It was the same one who interrupted them earlier that morning and she knew exactly who he was. But then, _everyone_ knew who Tidus Clearwater was.

"Hello again," Naminé softly greeted.

Kairi turned around with a determined expression on her face, ignoring Tidus's requests to calm down. "Have you been having any strange dreams lately? Please, I _need_ to know!"

Naminé shook her head. "I'm sorry. I haven't." She frowned when Kairi's determination was replaced by utter defeat. "Is everything okay?"

Tidus looked between the two girls and then took it upon himself to explain. "Kairi started having weird dreams a few days ago about her past life. Apparently you're in them. After what she says happened yesterday, I think she was hoping you'd know something about them. Or at least that she isn't the only one."

Naminé went still. Dreams weren't something that plagued her, but there was something else new in her life that was a little alarming. She nervously tucked a loose lock of hair behind one ear. "There's something you need to see."

Without waiting for their response, Naminé quickly retrieved her sketchbook from her satchel. With shaking hands she flipped through it until she found the right page and then walked over to show the two of them. "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night with this intense need to draw. I've been doing it since I was little, but... It's a lot more frequent now."

Kairi gasped when she saw the setting of one of her more recent dreams brought to life with pen and paper. Even without the bright colors of the fields of flowers and the crystal blue sky, she could easily recognize the Outer Garden.

"There's more," Naminé said, hugging herself with her arms to keep herself from snatching away the sketchbook. "You can look through it, if you want."

Kairi was already flipping through the pages, her eyes widening more and more with every image. Tidus looked over her shoulder, not wanting to be left out.

Naminé didn't need to look to know what pictures they were seeing. She'd gone over them many times herself, trying to figure out why she couldn't stop drawing them. There were no good answers. Many of the pictures were of that garden from different angles. Sometimes there were people there, but it was no one she recognized. Others depicted a group of people on a grassy field and often included bright colors swirling around them. Her favorite had been of a girl with her hair up in two buns, pink color blazing around her staring down another girl in shorts and dark hair, but after the evening before it filled Naminé's heart with fear.

The girl in pink looked remarkably like Kairi.

"These are amazing," Tidus complimented.

"Thank you," Naminé responded automatically.

Kairi reached the last page and stared at it for a moment before carefully closing the book and handing it back to the blonde girl. She started to speak and then stopped, frowning and reconsidering her words until she knew exactly what she wanted to say. "Naminé, I don't really know what's going on, but I'm going to find out. I promise."

Somehow, her words put Naminé a little more at ease.

* * *

><p>Sora pouted as Roxas roughly re-bandaged his arm, not even trying to be careful. "<em>Ow," <em>he complained.

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Don't be a baby. It's you're own fault you got hurt. You shouldn't have jumped in front of that Berserker like that."

"He's lucky he didn't break his arm," Riku said as he and Olette walked into the twins' shared bedroom. He walked over to the side of the bed Roxas wasn't on and sat down next to his boyfriend. "Does it feel any better? Is that potion kicking in yet?"

"A little. Still hurts though. _Roxas,_" Sora said, giving his brother an annoyed look.

Roxas smirked and tugged a little too hard as he tied off the bandage.

Olette slowly approached the bed, a worried look on her face. "Maybe it's time we start seriously considering finding some of the others. You guys keep getting hurt trying to help me and you don't heal as fast as I do!"

"No," Sora responded immediately, his voice hard. "We've talked about this. The others aren't ready."

Olette narrowed her eyes and put her hands on her hips, ready to argue the boy into submission if she had to. Roxas recognized the look in her eyes quickly backed away from his twin, leaving him and Riku directly in Olette's crosshairs.

Riku calmly laced his fingers with Sora's. "We also said that when it started getting too much for us, we would tell the others. This is the second time in two days we've barely won. We cannot keep going like this. Not for long."

Sora looked crushed. "But Riku-"

"I agree with Riku," Roxas said, earning three surprised glances. He raised an eyebrow. "What? I'm not allowed to agree with him just because I think he's an ass? He just _happens_ to be right for once. Now we just need to decide who."

"I vote Passion," Olette said immediately. "We need someone else with magic. Plus, she can work long or close range, depending on the situation."

Riku nodded. "There are also the Knights to consider. I can think of two of them who are close by and don't have busy schedules."

Sora shook his head. "Look, I know you think I'm going to say no to those two just because I don't think this is a good idea, but I know _exactly_ who you're talking about. Neither of them have shown any sign of awakening! And trust me, I would know because Roxas would've said something if they had."

The other two looked to Roxas for confirmation. He sighed. "There hasn't been any spontaneous combustion or reports of strange flooding, so safe to say they haven't remembered a thing."

Silence filled the room for a few brief seconds and then Olette spoke up again, despite already knowing what the answer would be. "There's always Peace and Heart."

"No," Sora and Riku said in unison.

"They will awaken eventually," Roxas reminded them. "I think they'd rather you tell them rather than find out on their own."

"I know, but..." Sora helplessly looked at Riku, but the silver-haired boy didn't have any reassuring words to give.

The silence returned.

Roxas sighed heavily and turned towards the door. "Alright. We'll try and get Passion back on board. I'll go let Cloud know and then I need to get going. C'mon, Olette. Hayner might have an aneurysm if we miss movie night again."

Olette glanced at Sora and Riku, who had bowed their heads together and were talking quietly. Deciding to leave them to it, she hurried after Roxas.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>Next chapter: Lazy Day Gone Wrong<p> 


	9. Lazy Day Gone Wrong

**Fragmented Memories**

Chapter 9: Lazy Day Gone Wrong

_Heart couldn't recall the last time she'd seen Sora look so happy. Even nearly a year ago, when they added Passion to their ranks, he had seemed pleased, but not so overjoyed that he was practically bouncing off the walls. _

_She and Peace sat back and watched as Sora danced around the hall, weaving in and out of Passion's attacks. It was a training exercise in magic. One would defend and the other would attack, and then they would switch. It was a common thing to do on days when the weather didn't lend well to training. Normally they stuck to weapons only, in order to cause less damage to their personal training hall, but Riku was away for the day and had warned them against it._

"_The last time we did this, Sora tried to use a bunch of throwing stars," Riku had told them. "Three of them are still stuck in the ceiling and I have two scars."_

_All three Soldiers made sure not to let Sora touch any of the weapons._

_Peace cleared her throat, tearing her gaze away from the fighting duo. "So who do you think Riku is bringing to train with us now? I've heard a few rumors of another Soldier on Gaia."_

"_That's a possibility," Heart agreed. "Or it could be someone Passion trained with on Centra. I also heard Sora and Riku talking about possibly recruiting a Soldier from Terra. Whoever they are, I think we're about to find out." She nodded towards the slightly open door, where two figures were standing._

_One was Riku, watching the ongoing match with a critical eye. The other was a familiar-looking boy with slate gray hair, dressed in a crisp black uniform, accented by navy blue piping and a cape draped across the back of his shoulders._

_Sora glanced his way and called Passion to a stop, dodging one last attack before going still. Passion pouted at first, but brightened when she saw that Riku had returned._

"_I would like to introduce Wisdom, who will be training with us from now on," Riku announced as he strode into the room. The dark-haired boy followed after him. "Though 'introduce' perhaps isn't the correct word, seeing as how you've met him before."_

_Heart's blue-violet eyes went wide as she finally realized why he looked so familiar. "Prince Ienzo?!"_

"_While you are training, he is not your Prince, but a fellow Soldier," Riku said firmly. "Heart, you will treat him no differently than you would Peace or Passion. You may not have been doing this for long, but we feel you are ready to step up and take your place as the leader. It's the best way for you to learn."_

_Heart stared at him, flabbergasted by his statement. "You- You can't honestly expect me to go along with this! You said it was my duty to __**protect**__ the Prince, not lead him by the hand into danger!"_

"_It's your duty to protect him, just as it's his duty to protect his world," Riku reminded her._

_Heart whirled around to look accusingly at Sora. "And what about you? Is this what you think too?!"_

_Sora nodded. "We hadn't intended on doing this so soon, but the Queen asked us to. She and the King have powers of their own – it's how they've guarded the kingdom so well. Prince Ienzo's abilities are stronger, which means he needs more specialized training. You know better than anyone that it's not up to __**us**__ who becomes a Soldier. He was chosen by this planet."_

_Fury and helplessness swelled and swirled inside of Heart._

"_I couldn't have put it better myself," someone announced from the door._

_Everyone turned at once to the doorway, where two strangers stood. The one who spoke was a girl who was clearly a Soldier in her orange and tan dress and matching mask. Her chocolate brown hair was pulled up to one side by an orange ribbon and was neatly curled. Next to her was a boy with spiky blond hair wearing white and black._

"_Roxas!" Sora shouted happily, running across the room to hug the boy. Once he was done, he pulled away and grinned at the girl. "And you brought Love with you!"_

"_Of course I did," Roxas said, rolling his eyes. "I wasn't going to just leave her behind in Twilight Town. Besides, you were the one who asked if I thought she was ready, and I believe she is." He paused to look over the Soldiers Riku and Sora had gathered together so far. "The two of you have been busy."_

_Riku stepped over to Sora's side. "Allow me to introduce you. Everyone, this is Roxas. Like us, he's a Guardian. And this is his charge, Love Soldier."_

"_Hello!" She said, waving. "I look forward to training with all of you!"_

_As Passion skipped over to say hello and Peace slowly got up and walked towards them, Heart wondered just how many more people she was expected to lead._

* * *

><p>Kairi raised an eyebrow when she stepped out of her room to find Demyx sitting in the hallway, picking at the dirt beneath his fingernails and just looking uncharacteristically sad. She sighed heavily and slid down the wall to sit next to him. "So, what's going on?"<p>

"Huh?" Demyx asked, sounding tired.

"You're sitting here in the hallway staring at the carpet instead of barging into my room and demanding attention. Something is wrong," Kairi said. "Wanna talk about it?"

Demyx didn't look at her. "Not really..."

Kairi hummed, not at all convinced.

"It's just..." Demyx paused briefly and then charged on. "Okay, so I took your advice about Zexion. You know, that guy I like. And it was going great at first! Better than great! It was going _perfectly._ We went to the movies and had dinner and this one time we went mini golfing with Roxas and Axel – which was probably a mistake, but I think Zexion had fun. And he did say something about not holding me responsible for the actions of my idiot best friend. And- Oh! I got to hold his hand! In public! It was wonderful..." He trailed off, lost in daydream.

Kairi patiently waited for him to return on his own.

He sighed sadly, dropping his hands to his lap. "I don't know what I did wrong, Kai. Yesterday I went to go meet up with him after class like I've been doing, but he wasn't there. I try to call him, but he doesn't answer. I went to go find him in the library and he saw me and ran away! I know it's only been a day and maybe I'm just imagining it, but I can't help but feel like he's avoiding me for some reason. Maybe I was wrong from the beginning. Maybe he's hated me all along but he's just too nice to tell me to bug off! Maybe I-"

"Demyx," Kairi interrupted before he could beat himself up further. "Take it easy. Breathe." She paused a moment while he did so. "I'm kind of amazed you managed to do all of that in just one day, but maybe _that's_ the problem. When you get interested in something or someone, you tend to just charge in full sprint. You get so swept up in what you're doing that you don't realize just how fast you're moving. And believe me, it's one of your most endearing qualities, but to someone who isn't used to it... It can be a little overwhelming."

Demyx looked even sadder, if possible.

Kairi gently wrapped an arm across his shoulders in a sort-of hug. "Just take it easy. Give him the weekend to have a little breathing room. Send him a text or leave a voice mail if you're really worried, but wait until you see him again to talk to him about this. Communication is key, right?"

"Right," Demyx murmured. They sat there for a few minutes in silence and then he laid his head on her shoulder. "How'd you get so good at this, Kai?"

"All that practice mediating Roxas and Axel's arguments is finally paying off," Kairi joked. "But really, I don't know. Maybe it's just that I have a better outside view of things." She removed her arm from him as he sat back up. "Hey, you know what might make you feel better?"

"Romcoms?" Demyx asked, sounding a little happier.

"Absolutely," Kairi replied. "You pick out a few and I'll meet you downstairs."

Demyx gleefully agreed and got to his feet, rushing to go get everything ready. Kairi laughed softly and went to go prepare for an all-day marathon.

* * *

><p>Something strange happened about halfway through their third movie.<p>

Kairi had just finished painting Demyx's toenails a pretty blue color when the doorbell rang. At first, neither of them reacted. But then it rang again. And then a third time.

"What's that sound?" Demyx asked, looking around in confusion.

Kairi shrugged. "Must be the TV."

"Are you sure? It sounds an awful lot like a doorbell," Demyx said.

Both of them looked at the screen, which was showing two of the characters walking around in a park with a tiny dog on a leash.

"Okay, it's not the movie," Kairi agreed, carefully removing Demyx's feet from her lap. "If you mess up your toes while I'm gone, I'm also doing your nails."

Demyx grimaced.

Kairi got up and stretched out her arms before slowly making her way to the front door. None of her friends ever used the doorbell, preferring to just go inside whether anyone was around to greet them or not, so there wasn't much point in hurrying to answer the door for a salesman or one of her grumpy neighbors coming to complain about her brothers doing something reckless in the yard again.

When she finally opened the door, she was stunned to find Naminé standing there.

"Sorry to just drop by like this," she apologized. "I, um, I realized I never got your number yesterday and I probably could have gotten it from Pence, but I wasn't sure how involved in all of this he wants to get..." She nervously twisted her finger in the hem of her shirt. "Can we talk?"

Kairi nodded, stepping aside to let Naminé in. "Of course. I think movie day is just about over anyway. Neither of us were paying attention to this last one..." She shut the door behind the other girl and then led her down the hall to the living room, where Demyx was admiring his toenails. "Naminé, this is Demyx."

Demyx immediately looked away from his toes, trying to play it off like he didn't secretly enjoy the color. "Hey there!"

"Hello," Naminé replied with a smile.

"Demyx, I forgot that there's something Naminé and I have to do for class. A project," Kairi lied. "You don't mind if we call it quits for the day, do you? We can finish this movie first."

"Nah, it's okay," Demyx replied with a shake of his head. "Axel should be off work by now. I think I'll go see what he's up to." He glanced at the television. "I have no idea what's been happening in this movie. I stopped paying attention after the girl tripped and fell into the fountain, pulling her date with her." He picked up the remote and hit the 'stop' button before turning off the DVD player and the TV.

Kairi watched him get up, slightly worried. It wasn't that long ago that he was moping in the middle of the hallway. "Are you sure?"

Demyx nodded and gave her a bright smile. "Yeah! You go on and have fun! Or, well, as much fun as you can have doing a project. Which probably isn't much fun. Mine never are."

Naminé giggled.

He bid them farewell and then left the room, removing his phone from his pocket to call Axel and see if he wanted any company.

Kairi turned to face Naminé. "You wanted to talk about something?"

Naminé nodded. "Actually, I wanted to talk to Tidus too, but I don't know where he lives. Is there anyplace quiet the three of us could go? So there's no chance of anyone overhearing us?"

"I can think of one," Kairi replied. "I'll call Tidus and then we can go."

* * *

><p>As it turned out, Naminé's motives for getting them together were quite simple and not at all unexpected. Kairi only wished she had more information to give the girl, but she still hadn't had the chance to talk to Sora or Riku about anything that had been happening to her. Even with that, their trip to the island wasn't completely pointless.<p>

Without anyone else around to distract her, Kairi was able to settle into a meditative state and transform on her own for the first time.

"Whoa!" Tidus exclaimed, scrambling to his feet to get a better look at her. "You really were telling the truth!"

Heart put her hands on her hips, giving him an annoyed look. "Of course I was! Do you really think I'd lie about something like this?"

"I-" Tidus paused to scratch the back of his neck and carefully consider his words. "No. I'm sorry I doubted you even a little bit. It's just sort of surreal, isn't it? These monsters, and you being able to transform into some sort of magical girl. You have powers, right? Cool ones?"

"I think so," Heart said unsurely. "I only used them the one time, but it wasn't really me in control. I think I might be able to..." She lifted up her arm, palm facing out, willing something to happen.

There was nothing.

Tidus looked disappointed.

Naminé looked thoughtful. "Maybe it only happens when there's something to fight," she suggested.

"Maybe..." Heart murmured. She was about to relax and shift back into her normal self, when a pinprick of darkness caught her attention. She instinctively moved into a fighting stance, looking around for whatever she felt. The entrance to the Secret Spot that she, Sora, and Riku claimed as their own so many years ago captured her eye for a moment, but then something moved in her peripherals. "Watch out!" She shouted, shoving Tidus aside just as a very large object slammed into the ground where he'd been standing seconds before.

Naminé shrieked in alarm as something knocked into her, sending her sprawling into the hot sand.

Heart spun around, knocking away the giant enemy with an arc of pink energy. It didn't do much more than annoy it. She yelled for Tidus to get himself and Naminé to safety and then threw herself into the fight. She found herself incredibly thankful for all of the hours she and her friends had spent running around in the thick sand, because it meant she knew just how fast she could move with it hindering her.

She ducked under the swing of a massive weapon and then had to immediately roll to the side as another tried to sideswipe her. She quickly got back to her feet and released another blast of energy. The monster staggered, finally wounded, but didn't go down. Heart took a chance to see where her friends were, forgetting there was more then one.

"KAIRI, NO!"

Heart went down. Hard.

She gasped for air, using all of her strength to roll her body to one side to avoid a bonecrushing blow, but the monster was faster. She could see the heavy weapon swinging downward, intent on ending her life, and she closed her eyes and prayed.

"_Blizzard!"_

There was a sound like shattered glass and then the monster crashed down mere inches from Heart and burst into bubbles, which quickly dissipated.

Heart opened her eyes in time to see a figure in white hurrying to her aid. She opened her mouth the warn the girl that there was still another one nearby, but a sudden flare of orange light left her speechless.

The second monster disappeared just like the first.

As Peace Soldier helped Heart sit up, a figure in orange and tan walked towards them with a grim look on her face.

"Love," Heart greeted with a rasp. "Nice of you to save us."

Peace looked shocked as the other Soldier knelt down next to them. Tidus hung back a little ways, worry clear on his face.

"This wasn't supposed to happen," Love told them. "I'm so sorry." She reached out to touch a scrape on Heart's arm, but the redhead pushed her away.

"I want to talk to Sora. Right _now_, Olette," Heart demanded.

Love drew back. "You can't. Not tonight. I haven't even talked to them today and they _always _let me know when there's been activity from the enemy." She paused, taking in Heart's determined expression and then Peace's obvious confusion. Her frown deepened when she saw Tidus standing nearby. "We're meeting up tomorrow at the Strife's. You should come talk to them then._ All_ of you."

"Fine," Heart agreed, not at all happy about the arrangement. "But if they're not there, we're coming to you for answers."

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>Next Chapter: The Truth Comes Out<p> 


	10. The Truth Comes Out

**Fragmented Memories**

Chapter 10: The Truth Comes Out

Kairi had calmed down by the time she and Tidus met up with Naminé on the street the Strife's lived on. She at least no longer wanted to kick down their front door and yell at her friends until they gave her a straight answer. (Well, maybe she did a little, but Cloud could be _really_ scary when he got angry and she figured breaking the door to his house wouldn't make him happy.)

"Are you sure you want to go with us?" Kairi asked Tidus for what must have been the eighth time since the evening before. "You don't seem to be a part of this mess. There's still time for you to get out of it."

Tidus adamantly shook his head. "No way! You are my _best friend_, Kairi. There is no way you're doing this without me there with you every step of the way. Just because I'm not having dreams or visions or whatever like the two of you doesn't mean I'm not involved."

"I guess there's no talking you out of this..." Kairi murmured.

"It's too late now anyway. Olette will have told Roxas that Tidus was with us yesterday," Naminé said knowingly. "If he wasn't with us, Cloud would just send someone to get him."

Kairi stopped walking, gazing at Naminé with stunned realization. When her friends realized she wasn't next to them anymore, they stopped as well.

"How... how do you know that?" Kairi asked. "I never mentioned Cloud. I wasn't even sure he was part of this until this morning. I mean, I assumed he was but..." She looked to Tidus for confirmation. He looked just as puzzled as she felt.

Naminé looked at the ground. "I was going to wait and tell everyone together. I remember now... Your dreams, my visions; they're real. They're our memories." She paused and took a deep breath. "It was strange waking up this morning and remembering this whole other life. I wanted to just stay in bed all day. I never feel like that. Maybe you're the lucky one." She finally looked up at Kairi. "You're getting your memories back piece by piece and not all at once. You get to hold onto who you are now. Meanwhile I'm... I'm not even sure who I am anymore."

Kairi wanted nothing more than to reach out to her new friend and pull her into her arms. She sounded so lost. So heartbroken.

Tidus beat her to it.

He walked over and gently grasped Naminé's hands in his own. "I know who you are. You're Naminé Snow, an _amazing_ art student and Senior at Destiny High, who just happens to also be able magically transform and kick monster butt! You're also my friend. And no memories of some past life are going to change that. I'm not going to say that memories aren't important, cuz I guess they kind of are, but it's up to _you_ to decide what to do with them. Maybe you can't be the same Naminé I knew yesterday, but you're not the same person you were in your past life either. You can be someone new! Someone just as amazing."

Naminé's light blue eyes welled up with tears. With a choked sob, she threw her arms around Tidus's neck and tightly hugged him. The blond boy immediately wrapped his arms around her, giving her the comfort she needed.

Kairi smiled at the pair. When Tidus finally looked up at her, she mouthed: "Thank you."

* * *

><p><em>Heart cautiously circled her opponent, her eyes narrowed behind her mask. She was aware of the Guardians standing off to the side with her fellow Soldiers, as well as the strange blond man who'd introduced himself as Cloud, but that wasn't important. All of her focus needed to be on the Soldier across from her.<em>

_Strength Soldier was a girl from Gaia who'd spend years training under the guidance of Cloud and alongside a handful of others. She'd been cheerful and displayed a surprising enthusiasm when she'd been introduced, but once in the training ring she became deadly serious. She never once turned her back on Heart, keeping her in sight at all times._

_Like Peace, Strength had short blonde hair, though hers was perfectly straight. Her uniform consisted of a sleeveless, navy blue jacket which split into two 'tails' in the back. Beneath it she wore a collared white shirt, a blue tie, and a black mini-skirt. Her gloves and mid-calf boots were also black, but her mask was the same navy blue as her jacket. Lightning crackled around her as she moved, itching to strike out._

_As if by unspoken agreement, the two attacked in the same instant._

"_Heavenly Ribbon!"_

"_Thunderstrike!"_

_The resulting shockwave knocked everyone from their feet._

_Heart smacked her head against something hard and blacked out._

_When she came to, there was a red-haired boy standing over her, lightly making fun of her frizzy, electrocuted hair. __**Lea**__, she remembered. __**My brother.**_

_Her vision again went black. When it returned, there was a pair standing over her. Prince Ienzo spoke calmly, enunciating his words to ensure she understood. The other boy was blond, with wide, worried sea-green eyes. __**Emyd.**_

_With a sigh she closed her eyes. She wanted to sleep, but new voices had her reluctantly opening them again._

_Sora, Roxas, and Riku were there, looking as they always had, even after ten years. Strange how they never seemed to get any older..._

* * *

><p>"And that's all I remember," Kairi said with a shrug. She was beginning to get unnerved by the way everyone was looking at her so intently. It made her feel like she'd done something wrong and that they were watching her for any sign of weakness. "So what's going on? Why am I still having these dreams when everyone else seems to remember?"<p>

From the couch, Sora and Riku exchanged an uneasy glance, while Roxas just looked annoyed and Cloud contemplated. Olette, seated comfortably in the blue recliner, strummed her fingers on her knees, looking between the Guardians to her fellow Soldiers and Tidus (on the smaller couch) and then back again.

The silence stretched on long enough that Tidus began to get annoyed.

"Isn't there, I don't know, someone in charge of restoring memories or something?" He asked. "Some kind of memory Soldier? Maybe you could ask them."

Cloud frowned. "There _was_ a Soldier from Memoria, but I think I speak for everyone when I say it's best if he had nothing to do with this."

Sora made a funny face. "Y'know, I think I'd die happy if I never had to see him again. He was _weird_. But even if he was still around, he never had any power over memories."

"He had some influence over dreams though," Riku pointed out. "It's possible that he has a hand in this. But enough about him. I imagine you have some questions about what's happening right now and _why_ it's happening."

Kairi crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, so now you want to explain things."

"Kairi!" Tidus hissed.

"No, it's alright," Cloud said calmly. "You have every right to be angry. We should have told you the moment the enemy began showing itself around town. It isn't fair that you've been suffering over this for a week and I apologize. Now we'll start from the beginning."

"The Fall," Roxas muttered.

The atmosphere in the room took a turn for the worst. No one who remembered any part of the past wanted to speak.

Tidus had no such qualms. "The fall of what?"

"Radiant Garden," Naminé quietly explained. "The day our lives ended. I don't remember much about it. I think... I was fighting and then... nothing."

"Everything was in ruin by the time the first two waves were fought off," Riku said morosely, staring at a spot on the wall opposite of him. "They came out of nowhere and overpowered our limited forces. So many of us were lost or fading fast. Those of us who survived... we never would have made it. Our enemy was too strong. Too clever. So the King and Queen did what they needed to do to keep the rest of the worlds from falling to the same darkness."

"Using the last of their powers, they sealed away our enemy," Sora continued. "And we were sent along with it, so that when the day came that our enemy regained its power, we would be there to stop them. But to do so, we had to be reborn, which meant a new life and new memories. We were told that when the time was right, each of us would remember. And most of us have."

Olette looked down at the carpet as she spoke. "We're still not sure who was reborn with us or where they're at. We hoped you would be, Kairi, but it's sort of a trial and error when it comes down to figuring it out. If it makes you feel any better, they didn't come right out and tell me either."

Kairi didn't feel very reassured by that. If anything, it made her feel more annoyed. She could understand why they did it, though. If there was a chance that she wasn't destined to be Heart Soldier in her new life and they told her that she was, the consequences could have been disastrous.

Naminé leaned forward. "So who _has _been found? Does Passion know yet? Or Strength?"

Sora shook his head. "We were going to see if Passion remembered anything, but then Olette told us about you two. So aside from the three of you, we only know of Courage and Brave and a couple of the Knights."

"Knights?" Kairi and Tidus asked in unison.

"Haven't remembered them either, huh?" Sora asked, sounding tired. "They're sort of like the flip side of a coin to Soldiers."

Cloud cleared his throat. "In the past, Knights arose to help keep Soldiers balanced. They were paired together to keep one another stable, but as time wore on, it was no longer necessary. By the time you began your training, the planets had figured out how to establish that balance within each individual Soldier and Knight. Still, exceptions arose." He paused a moment to allow the information to sink in. "Brave Soldier is weighted heavily by his powers over ice. He was rather withdrawn to begin with, but his element enhances that at least twofold. Likewise, Fire Cross is threatened to be consumed by his. Their opposing powers work to keep them in perfect balance. Luckily, the two keep finding each other without any of us having to get involved."

"I don't get it," Tidus said, scratching his neck. "Why call them Knights? I mean, couldn't two Soldiers have a bond like that?"

"It's possible, but very rare," Riku admitted. "More than that, there really is a difference between them. More than just the names, its the way their abilities manifest themselves."

Sora nodded. "Yeah! Knights need a conduit for their energy. Usually it's a weapon of some kind. Soldiers don't need to do that. I'm sure you've noticed that you can use your powers with just your hands."

"Soldiers also have the ability to mold their powers into a weapon," Olette spoke up. "Like my arrows of light or Naminé's ice chain. Knights tend to prefer tangible weapons. But like Cloud said, there are always exceptions."

"I thought we agreed a longtime ago to stop counting Melodious Nocturne as a _normal_ Knight," Sora said jokingly.

Roxas punched him in the arm. "Have some respect. We don't even know if he'll recover his memories."

Sora pouted and rubbed his arm, leaning away from his twin and into Riku.

Cloud sighed at the behavior of his younger brothers. "While I'm sure this is entertaining to the two of you, we have other matters to discuss. Now that Peace and Heart have awakened their powers, they'll have to start training again. There's only so far you'll get on instinct. More importantly, what are we going to do about Tidus?"

The aforementioned blond sat up straight, suddenly worried. "What do you mean?"

"You know our identities, but have no abilities of your own. That makes you a risk," Riku said.

"Then he can train with us," Kairi said, coming to her friend's aid.

"But he's not–!"

To everyone's surprise, Sora interjected before Riku could finish. "It's too late to change what he knows. Besides, if I know Tidus, it'd be way worse not to give him some training. One way or another he's going to get himself into trouble, so lets make sure he can handle himself when it happens."

"Yeah!" Tidus enthusiastically agreed. "Hey, wait a sec... are you insulting me?"

Everyone except Cloud began to laugh.

* * *

><p>End Chapter<p>

* * *

><p>Next chapter: Like Riding a Bike<p> 


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